Views from the Choir Loft

Does Your Choir Sing Perfectly?

Jeff Ostrowski · December 2, 2016

HAVE SOMETHING to say about perfection—as it relates to directing a church choir—but it will have to wait for another day when I have sufficient time. For now, I would simply point out how rarely we encounter true perfection. Even the greatest musicians made mistakes. Alfred Cortot made mistakes. Edwin Fischer made mistakes. Sviatoslav Richter made mistakes.

Today I stumbled across a recording I listened to often in high school. It’s a transcription by Liszt (with additions by Horowitz) of an orchestral piece ¹ by Camille Saint-Saëns, who was himself a remarkable pianist. This 1942 performance by Horowitz is absolutely perfect as far as I’m concerned—and I don’t say that lightly:

I have more to say about great pianists like Josef Hofmann, Ignace Tiegerman, Vladimir Horowitz, Edwin Fischer, Sviatoslav Richter, Leopold Godowski, Sergei Rachmaninov, Alfred Cortot, Benno Moiseiwitsch, Josef Lhevinne, Glenn Gould, Dinu Lipatti, and so many others. I usually hesitate to mention them on our blog because their ocean of greatness is so vast I don’t know where to begin. It reminds me of how we often fail to tell our loved ones how we feel about them—I suspect because words cannot do our feelings justice.

For the record, Horowitz hits a wrong note at 5:48. But there’s so much more to musical “perfection” than the avoidance of wrong notes…

NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1 It’s amazing how much the piece is improved when transferred to piano, but that’s another story.

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

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).

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)

Our choir is on break during the month of July. However, on the feasts website, the chants have been posted for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C), which is this coming Sunday: 6 July 2025.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)

With each passing day, more is revealed about how the enemies of the liturgy accomplished their goals. For instance, Hannibal Bugnini deeply resented the way Vatican II said Gregorian Chant “must be given first place in liturgical services.” On 6 November 1966, his cadre wrote a letter attempting to justify the elimination of Gregorian Chant with this brazen statement: “What really gives a Mass its tone is not so much the songs as it is the prayers and readings.” Bugnini’s cadre then attacked the very heart of Gregorian Chant (viz. the Proprium Missae), bemoaning how the Proprium Missae “is completely new each Sunday and feast day.” There is much more to be said about this topic. Stay tuned.

—Jeff Ostrowski

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

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

Saint Phillip Neri founded a religious congregation called the Oratory. Animuccia was involved from early on and remained “maestro di capella” of the Oratory until his death. The Oratory was able to attract many musicians who volunteered their services, including the famous singer Francesco Soto de Langa from the Capella Sistina, the composer Palestrina, and probably the composer Tomás Luis de Victoria who lived in the same house as St. Phillip Neri for five years.

— Source Unknown