• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

“What earlier generations held as sacred, remains sacred and great for us too…” Pope Benedict XVI (7 July 2007)

  • Our Team
  • Pew Resources
    • Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal
    • Jogues Illuminated Missal
    • Campion Missal, 3rd Edition
  • MUSICAL WEBSITES
    • René Goupil Gregorian Chant
    • Noël Chabanel Psalms
    • Nova Organi Harmonia (2,279 pages)
    • Lalemant Polyphonic
    • Saint Antoine Daniel KYRIALE
    • Roman Missal, 3rd Edition
    • Emporium Kevin Allen
  • Miscellaneous
    • Site Map
    • Saint Jean de Lalande Library
    • Sacred Music Symposium 2023
  • Donate
Views from the Choir Loft

Brébeuf Harmony Edition • “Splendid Beyond Words”

Jeff Ostrowski · April 9, 2019

UR DIVINE MASTER, Jesus Christ, said: “A woman in labor hath sorrow, because her hour is come; but the child being born, she remembers no more the anguish…”  Nobody has been more eager for the Brébeuf Harmony Edition to appear than me; and I’ve been waiting five long years. But I was told today it is supposed to be available for purchase very soon—that is to say, within a few days.

Folks, I have seen a copy:   IT.  IS.  FABULOUS.

I sat down at the organ and could not stop playing through it. I just couldn’t stop! I played through each hymn, singing all the verses to myself. The harmonizations are phenomenal. Since 2013, I’ve looked at probably 20,000 pages of hymn harmonizations—but I’ve never seen anything like the Brébeuf harmonies. They are simple, yet elegant. More importantly, they are within the range of singers! To be honest, there were some tunes I wasn’t 100% convinced of before; but when I hear them with the Brébeuf harmonies, I am blown away…and now I would die for these melodies. Yes, folks, they are that epic.

AS SOMEONE WHO CONTRIBUTED SEVERAL ORIGINAL HARMONIES TO THIS BOOK, I WILL BE NOTIFIED THE INSTANT IT BECOMES AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE. AND I WILL LET YOU KNOW IMMEDIATELY.

Here is a sample:

    * *  PDF Download • Unauthorized Preview

There is a harmony for every single hymn! …and the Brébeuf Hymnal is 932 pages!

The harmony edition doesn’t make any sense without the Pew Hymnal. It is complementary. However, you will be hearing a lot more about this—and you will love it. It was designed to work with parishes; it is “practical” to a fault. More later.

84999-Brebeuf-Accompaniment-C 84999-Brebeuf-Accompaniment-B 84999-Brebeuf-Accompaniment-A


I’m told they still need a few proofreaders to look over 1-2 sections one final time. If you’re interested, send an email to: liturgical.institute@gmail.com.

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

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Subscribe

It greatly helps us if you subscribe to our mailing list!

* indicates required

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).

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

Quick Thoughts

    Tempo?? • 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘎𝘰𝘥, 𝘞𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘺 𝘕𝘢𝘮𝘦
    Once, after Mass, my pastor said he really loved the hymn we did. I said: “Father, that's Holy God, We Praise Thy Name—you never heard it before?” He replied: “But the way you did it was terrific. For once, it didn't sound like a funeral dirge!” Last Sunday, our volunteer choir sang that hymn. I think the tempo was just about right … but what do you think?
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Don’t You Agree About These?
    If you want to make Jeff Ostrowski really happy, send him an email with effusive praise about the individual voice recordings for hymn #296. [Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass] They came out dazzlingly sensational, don't you agree?
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Choral Vowels? Yes? No?
    Here's a live recording of one of the choral “warm-up” exercises my choir enjoys. It was taken during our rehearsal on 27 January 2023. It’s good to make sure each chord is perfectly in tune and balanced before moving to the next one. That only happens when each singer has the correct vowel. If you like, you can freely download that vocal exercise.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“A penalty is decreed against clerics, who, being in sacred Orders, or holding benefices, do not wear a dress befitting their Order. […] In these days, the contempt of religion has grown to such a pitch that—making but little account of their own dignity, and of the clerical honor—some even wear in public the dress of laymen…”

— ‘Council of Trent (Session 14, Chapter 6)’

Recent Posts

  • Tempo?? • 𝘏𝘰𝘭𝘺 𝘎𝘰𝘥, 𝘞𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘛𝘩𝘺 𝘕𝘢𝘮𝘦
  • PDF Download • Belgian Book of Gregorian Accompaniments (Official Edition)
  • Don’t You Agree About These?
  • Choral Vowels? Yes? No?
  • Crucial Tip For Choir Directors

Subscribe

Subscribe

* indicates required

Copyright © 2023 Corpus Christi Watershed · Isaac Jogues on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

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.