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Views from the Choir Loft

Catholic Hymns Before Vatican II Will Shock You!

Jeff Ostrowski · February 28, 2016

NE OF OUR MOST CONTROVERSIAL articles appeared on 19 August 2013. That was the day we posted a 1937 article by Dom Gregory Hügle, OSB, affirming that selections from the Ordinarium Missae and Proprium Missae could be sung during LOW MASS. Some demanded that the post be taken down, e.g. the head of an anonymous “ultra-conservative” blog who sent several nasty emails. It seems that Fr. Hügle’s article contradicted a narrative this person had been promoting about the pre-conciliar liturgy and he felt the truth should be kept secret—I disagreed.

In spite of what you may have read online, hymns and selections from the Ordinarium Missae were often sung during Low Mass in English. Consider these pages from a 1913 hymnal published by a English Benedictine monk:

    * *  PDF Download • From a 1913 Roman Catholic Hymnal

Is this a fluke? No, because the hymnal’s IMPRIMATUR PAGE includes several distinguished clerics, including Francis Aidan Gasquet (who later became a Cardinal). 1 In light of this, the “hype” that accompanied Alexander Peloquin’s 1964 performance of a Mass Ordinary in English seems silly.

Those who have read the PREFACE to the Campion Hymnal realize that prior to 1965, Catholics were free to worship any way they wished. 2 After Vatican II, the strong emphasis on external participation caused some to neglect internal participation:




NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   Unless I’m wrong, it isn’t every day that a Benedictine monk is elevated to the cardinalate.

2   This is why official rubrics for the congregation at Low Mass do not exist.

Opinions by blog authors do not necessarily represent the views of Corpus Christi Watershed.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Francis Aidan Cardinal Gasquet, Low Mass Vernacular Hymns Last Updated: April 6, 2021

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About Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He resides with his wife and children in Michigan. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Urgent! • We Desperately Need Funds!
    A few days ago, the president of Corpus Christi Watershed posted this urgent appeal for funds. Please help us make sure we’re never forced to place our content behind a paywall. We feel it’s crucial that 100% of our content remains free to everyone. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity, entirely dependent upon the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment and no major donors. We run no advertisements and have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $4.00 per month. Thank you!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Booklet of Eucharistic Hymns” (16 pages)
    I was asked to create a booklet for my parish to use during our CORPUS CHRISTI PROCESSION on 22 June 2025. Would you be willing to look over the DRAFT BOOKLET (16 pages) I came up with? I tried to include a variety of hymns: some have a refrain; some are in major, others in minor; some are metered, others are plainsong; some are in Spanish, some are in Latin, but most are in English. Normally, we’d use the Brébeuf Hymnal—but we can’t risk having our congregation carry those heavy books all over the city to various churches.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

“It is the choir that can make the most valuable contribution to the liturgy; it is through the choir that significant numbers of the congregation can make a significant and valuable offering in the community’s act of worship. The choir links directly academic excellence, artistic creation, disciplined attention and self expression in the making of something fitting for the worship of God.”

— Father Daniel Higgins, Choirmaster at Saint Edmund’s College, Ware

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Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.

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