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Views from the Choir Loft

Brébeuf #379 • “Quem Terra” (Melcombe)

Jeff Ostrowski · August 3, 2019

OMEBODY WHO TAKES THE TIME to carefully examine old Catholic hymnals will discover that “Melcombe” was one of the most popular tunes. Fr. Selner (1952) used it for “O Salutaris Hostia.” Sir Richard Runciman Terry (1912) used it for “O Thou immortal Light divine.” Dom Gregory Murray (1939) in the New Westminster Hymnal used it for “Verbum Supernum Prodiens.” J. Vincent Higginson (a.k.a. “Cyr de Brant”) used it (1955) in the Mediator Dei Hymnal for “I love Thee, O Thou Lord most high.” Furthermore, the best Protestant hymnals use this melody with multifarious texts.

Numerous rehearsal videos are available at the Brébeuf website.

Last night, MELCOMBE was added to the collection:

You can hear the individual tracks if you visit the Brébeuf website and scroll to #379.

The beautiful translation of “Quem Terra, Pontus, Aethera” is by Prior James Ambrose Dominic Aylward (d. 1872). That ancient Latin hymn—“Quem Terra”—is quite important, and was consequently featured heavily in the Brébeuf Hymnal. It was given numerous translations, explanations, and set to quite a few different melodies.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Sir Richard Runciman Terry Last Updated: September 4, 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

    Vespers Booklet (4th Sunday of Lent)
    The organ accompaniment booklet (24 pages) which I created for the 4th Sunday of Lent (“Lætare Sunday”) may now be downloaded, for those who desire such a thing.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Vespers Booklet, 3rd Sunday of Lent
    The organ accompaniment I created for the 3rd Sunday of Lent (“Extraordinary Form”) may now be downloaded, if anyone is interested in this.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Weeping For Joy! (We Hope!)
    Listening to this Easter Alleluia—an SATB arrangement I made twenty years ago based on the work of Monsignor Jules Van Nuffel—one of our readers left this comment: “I get tears in my eyes each time I sing to this hymn.” I hope this person is weeping for joy!
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

Goupil deserves the name of martyr not only because he has been murdered by the enemies of God and His Church while laboring in ardent charity for his neighbor, but most of all because he was killed for being at prayer and notably for making the Sign of the Cross.

— St. Isaac Jogues (after the martyrdom of Saint René Goupil)

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