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

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Views from the Choir Loft

The Amazing Uy Family Singers!

Jeff Ostrowski · April 12, 2019

HE IDEA BEHIND the Brébeuf Hymnal is to provide melodies which are supremely dignified yet not difficult to sing—i.e. simple but stately. These “common tunes” were married to numerous texts, because (sadly) most Catholic congregations don’t know many excellent tunes, and teaching new ones requires months of patient perseverance. However, the Tune/Text pairings must be done with great sensitivity. You wouldn’t normally want to marry an Easter text to a Christmas melody, for example—even though the Arundel Hymnal did precisely that—and don’t even get me started on the pairings in the Pope Pius XII Hymnal.

You will have to forgive me, therefore, for posting a Christmas Carol when we are so close to the Sacred Triduum. This particular setting by Peter Lejeune was featured on the CCWatershed blog during Advent. I was so impressed, I couldn’t resist sharing it:


Rehearsal videos—along with PDF score—are located at #87488. Remember this setting when Christmas comes around. We sang it in Los Angeles, and it was a big hit.

For the record, Peter Lejeune was among those who contributed original harmonies to the the Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal accompaniment edition, which is supposed to appear any day now.

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

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

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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 Los Angeles.—(Read full biography).

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Quick Thoughts

16 May 2022 • Harmonized Chant?

This year’s upcoming Sacred Music Symposium will demonstrate several ways to sing the CREDO at Mass. This is because—for many parishes—to sing a full-length polyphonic CREDO by Victoria or Palestrina is out of the question. Therefore, we show options that are halfway between plainsong and polyphony. You can hear my choir rehearsing a section that sounds like harmonized plainsong.

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • “Pure” Vatican Edition

As readers know, my choir has been singing from the “pure” Editio Vaticana. That is to say, the official rhythm which—technically—is the only rhythm allowed by the Church. I haven’t figured out how I want the scores to look, so in the meantime we’ve been using temporary scores that look like this. Stay tuned!

—Jeff Ostrowski
14 May 2022 • Gorgeous Book

If there is a more beautiful book than Abbat Pothier’s 1888 Processionale Monasticum, I don’t know what it might be. This gorgeous tome was today added to the Saint John Lalande Online Library. I wish I owned a physical copy.

—Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“The following few hints on the selection of voices may be useful: (1) Reject all boys who speak roughly, or sing coarsely; (2) Choose bright, intelligent-looking boys, provided they have a good ear; they will much more readily respond to the choirmaster’s efforts than boys who possess a voice and nothing more; therefore, (3) Reject dull, sulky, or scatter-brained boys, since it is hard to say which of the three has the most demoralizing effect on his more willing companions.”

— Sir Richard Runciman Terry (1912)

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