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Views from the Choir Loft

PDF Download • Mass Hymns by Fr. Seed, SJ (1906)

Jeff Ostrowski · November 15, 2018

OMETIMES a truth once generally accepted becomes obscured. To give an example: Josef Hofmann was once known as king of pianists; by the general public, as well as artists like Rachmaninov, Samaroff, and Friedman. He belongs on that pedestal—oh, without question!—and ought to be rediscovered. Steinway placed him in a class with only two other pianists; even higher than Rachmaninov. Yet very few people today even know his name.

Regarding singing at Low Mass, over the past few years, the shocking truth has been restored to a large extent through documentation (see below) posted by CCWatershed. Notice it says “through the Gospel” here:

DURING A LOW MASS, there is usually time for four hymns—one from the beginning of Mass up to or through the Gospel, but certainly to be finished by or before the end of the Gospel Reading, so as not to interfere with or delay the making of announcements or the preaching of the sermon. A second hymn can be started at the Credo; another after the Elevation, and the last one during Communion, to end with the last Gospel for the prayers after Mass.
—Caecilia Magazine of Catholic Church Music, 64: 4 (1937)


Once we understand that, we can appreciate this incredibly rare book:

* *  PDF Download • Mass Hymns by Fr. Thomas Seed, SJ (1906)

How strange to see such items! A metrical setting (in English) of the Asperges Me in 1906; English songs being sung throughout Low Mass, including during the Gospel; English songs being sung during the Credo, Last Blessing, Sanctus, Agnus Dei, Pater Noster, etc. 1

Important Reminder: I am not advocating the revival of such a practice. I am merely presenting what was done. Thank you in advance for not attacking me because I acknowledge what actually happened in certain places.

THERE CAN BE no doubt such things occurred. Consider this fascinating excerpt from the 1910 hymnal by Fr. Gregory Ould, OSB:

* *  PDF Download • Hymnal by Fr. Ould (1910)

Did you notice the “Creed” and “Our Father” in English are called hymns? Did you notice also Number 248?

Now, carefully read Page 3 from Cardinal O’Connell’s hymnal (Boston):

* *  PDF Download • Holy Cross Hymnal (1915)

Finally, consider this excerpt from the New Saint Basil:

* *  PDF Excerpt • New Saint Basil Hymnal (1958)

Vatican II wanted people to “pray the Mass, rather than pray at Mass.” However, the exact opposite happened after Vatican II, and currently we have a situation where very few people even realize what the Mass Propers are! There is much work to be done…

A Review—written in 1906—of the hymn book by Fr. Thomas Seed, SJ:

Lady Euan-Smith has rendered a signal service to the congregational singing of our churches, by setting to music Hymns by Faber and other well known Authors (price 6d.); Mass Hymns by Father Thomas Seed, S.J. (price 6d.); and Benediction Service as sung in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street, London (price 4d.) Novello & Co. are the publishers of these compositions. They are all done in a pleasing and thoroughly musicianlike manner. The harmonies are full, varied, effective, and well chosen; nothing strained or beyond the reach of ordinary choirs. To us, in Ireland, the most useful of the three batches of music will be the Benediction Service.

With regard to the hymns we are not sure that the method of placing all the words at the bottom of the page, away from the music to which they are to be sung, is the wisest and handiest. The old style of inserting the words right under the music seems better. We have noticed here and there rather strange and inconvenient forms of the accidentals. We should have preferred, for instance, C-flat instead of B-natural in the bass of the first bar of the soprano solo in the litany at page 5. The same might be said of the last bar of the alto part of the Tantum Ergo at page 6.


NOTES FROM THIS ARTICLE:

1   During the 1990s, our priest did allow the school children to sing English hymns for the Offertory (Low Mass only), and I would not condemn such a thing.

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

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Tagged With: Low Mass Vernacular Hymns Last Updated: September 14, 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

“In 1848, Franz Liszt attended a performance of Schumann’s 1st Piano Trio, held in his honor in the Schumanns’ home. Liszt arrived two hours late with Wagner (who hadn’t been invited), derided the piece, and spoke ill of the recently deceased Mendelssohn. This upset the Schumanns, and Robert physically assaulted Liszt.”

— Janita Hall-Swadley

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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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