Marcel Dupré • “Live” Recording (2 Feb 1964)

Jeff Ostrowski · January 1, 2019

OME BELIEVE Marcel Dupré was the greatest organist of all time. Whether you agree or disagree, I think you’ll find this recording interesting:

There are certainly a few wrong notes! But please remember that Dupré was age 78 when he made this live recording on 2 February 1964. So next time you hit a false note, don’t be too hard on yourself. It happens to even the very best! In the past, I’ve been too hard on organists (because I can’t stand wrong notes) and I’m thinking I need to back off.

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).

CCW • Appeal at Year’s End

We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity. We exist solely by the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment; we have no major donors; we run no advertisements; we have no savings. As 2024 comes to a close, we could really use your financial support—especially if you have never donated before. Click here to securely donate with any major credit card. Thank you very much!

—Jeff Ostrowski

Re: Sacred Music Symposium 2025

If you aren’t subscribed to our (free) mailing list, you missed last week’s huge announcement vis-à-vis the SACRED MUSIC SYMPOSIUM. Its dates and location have been announced. If you haven’t yet signed up for our newsletter … what are you waiting for? It contains important information and announcements. Subscribing couldn’t be easier: just scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.

—Jeff Ostrowski

“Entrance Chant” • 3rd Sunday of Advent

Download the ENTRANCE ANTIPHON in English for the 3rd Sunday of Advent (15 December 2024). Set in the first mode—just like the authentic version—this setting manages to capture the “essence” of the famous Gaudete Introit, which Father Valentine Young loved because of the nihil sollíciti sitis text. Corresponding to the vocalist score is this free organ accompaniment. If you’re someone who enjoys rehearsal videos, this morning I attempted to sing it while simultaneously accompanying my voice on the pipe organ.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Epiphany Proclamation 2025

Each year, without fail, someone asks me to typeset the Epiphany Proclamation, an announcement of moveable feasts chanted each year on the feast of the Epiphany. As a result, you may now find an archive of 23 such proclamations in PDF ready to print HERE.

—Veronica Brandt

The Breviary in the Life of the Laity

Recently I have been enjoying looking through the inaugural (1927) edition of a 20th-century liturgical magazine called Orate Fratres. The July 1927 issue included an excellent article by a Chicago laywoman named Ellen Gates Starr entitled “The Delights of the Breviary: From the Point of View of a Lay Woman.” As we in the 21st century have recently undergone a (blessed!) re-translation of the missal into English, and as we await with joyful hope (please God, before Jesus comes back!) a similar re-translation of the breviary, the opening of her article reminded me of that old saying, “the more things change, the more they stay the same.” Nearly a hundred years ago, she penned words that could just as easily have been written today: “It is indeed a privilege to be allowed any participation, however slight, in the liturgical movement in the Church – the movement to bring back the classics of devotion, the Missal and the Breviary, into general use by the laity. The wonder is that they should ever have fallen into disuse. Nothing can take the place of these great universal prayers of the Church, the prayers of the Mass and the divine Office. One has only to know them to find them indispensable. And alas, how few of the laity know them!” I know that I have been tremendously nourished by regular praying of the breviary as of late, and my wish is that you and I, dear reader, may continue to nourish our interior lives with the official prayer of the Church, which present to us (in the Mass) and extend (in the Office) the fullness of Christ’s greatest gift to us – the gift of Himself – in the Most Holy Eucharist.

—Daniel Tucker

Principles vs Preferences

I ran into this idea recently: principles vs. preferences in planning out a curriculum or music lineup. In this idea, it is imperative to not misconstrue personal preferences into principles—that the music (or subject matter) is great because: “I have good taste, and I like it.” De gustibus… Education, study and docility to the Magisterium of the Church on matters of liturgical music must be present in those who make the music at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the Hours. Who knows? Maybe you might start to prefer the music that is fitting according to the principles Catholic Sacred Music?

—William J. Fritz

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About Jeff Ostrowski