Views from the Choir Loft

PDF Download • “Leeds Catholic Hymnal” (232 pages)

Jeff Ostrowski · August 13, 2018

HE TIME has come for honesty; so let me be completely honest. I’m bubbling over with excitement about the imminent release of the St. Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal. It is truly unique. On the one hand, it is aimed at the “average” Catholic parish in the United States—and I have personally experienced so many of these, from cathedrals to small rural churches. That means the texts are accessible and the melodies are solid, beautiful, dignified, and (usually) simple. On the other hand, our historical research was extensive—and we unearthed unbelievable hymn treasures which are almost beyond belief. We scanned thousands of pages of Catholic hymnals, choosing only what is most excellent from each. ¹

This was sent to us from England:

* * PDF • 1957 LEEDS ROMAN CATHOLIC HYMNAL (232 pages)

This hymnal has been out of print for half a decade! It was generously scanned and sent to Corpus Christi Watershed by Mr. Colin E. Jackson.

From what I can tell, the Leeds Hymnal (1957) contains only “traditional” material, whereas the Brébeuf contains melodies and texts commissioned from contemporary artists.

Update:

Well, I guess there is a reason for my earlier comment about “traditional” hymns—check out what was just sent to me, from the “words” edition which appeared in 1954:

87932 LEEDS DIOCESE CATHOLIC HYMNAL 1954

NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1 Generous friends from all over the world have also assisted us, sending us interesting historical hymnals.

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 Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

Surprising Popularity!

One of our most popular downloads has proven to be the organ accompaniment to “The Monastery Hymnal” (131 pages). This book was compiled, arranged, and edited by Achille P. Bragers, who studied at the Lemmensinstituut (Belgium) about thirty years before that school produced the NOH. Bragers might be considered an example of Belgium “Stile Antico” whereas Flor Peeters and Jules Van Nuffel represented Belgium “Prima Pratica.” You can download the hymnal by Bragers at this link.

—Jeff Ostrowski

15 February 2021 • To Capitalize…?

In the Introit for the 6th Sunday after Pentecost, there is a question regarding whether to capitalize the word “christi.” The Vulgata does not, because Psalm 27 is not specifically referring to Our Lord, but rather to God’s “anointed one.” However, Missals tend to capitalize it, such as the official 1962 Missal and also a book from 1777 called Missel de Paris. Something tells me Monsignor Knox would not capitalize it.

—Jeff Ostrowski

15 February 2021 • “Sung vs. Spoken”

We have spoken quite a bit about “sung vs. spoken” antiphons. We have also noted that the texts of the Graduale Romanum sometimes don’t match the Missal texts (in the Extraordinary Form) because the Mass Propers are older than Saint Jerome’s Vulgate, and sometimes came from the ITALA versions of Sacred Scripture. On occasion, the Missal itself doesn’t match the Vulgate—cf. the Introit “Esto Mihi.” The Vulgate has: “Esto mihi in Deum protectórem et in domum refúgii…” but the Missal and Graduale Romanum use “Esto mihi in Deum protectórem et in locum refúgii…” The 1970s “spoken propers” use the traditional version, as you can see.

—Jeff Ostrowski