Views from the Choir Loft

PDF Download • “Lucis Creator Optime” (Vespers Hymn)

Jeff Ostrowski · January 21, 2020

HEN I PLAY organ for Vespers on Sunday afternoon, sometimes I have to jump in and sing. It doesn’t happen often—because we usually have at least 30-40 singers—but on certain days it’s necessary…such as the Sunday before Thanksgiving, when the attendance was quite sparse! We normally do the “Lucis Creator Optime” to a metrical hymn setting, taken from the Brébeuf Hymnal (since everything else is sung in plainsong) but sometimes we sing the plainsong version.

I composed this organ accompaniment following the “Brébeuf method,” where every verse is written out:

* PDF Download • “Lucis Creator Optime” (Vespers Hymn)

Perhaps my favorite thing about the Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal is how every single verse of the organ accompaniments is carefully written out. It makes life so easy, I actually feel guilty! Notice how the accompaniment provides contrasting accompaniments for the same melodic phrase; one has the bass line in descending stepwise motion, while the other has the bass line in ascending stepwise motion:

But the Brébeuf Hymnal is hardly the first book to recognize how essential it is to write out every verse. Take a look at this special Paris edition of the Antiphonale, printed in 1913:

By the way, the approbation in the front of that book is by Cardinal Martinelli, who wrote a very important letter condemning the “Mocquereau” rhythm, the “Wagner” rhythm, and the “Haberl” rhythm. We shall speak of that letter another day…

I think you’ll agree we have made tremendous progress since 1851, when this accompaniment appeared:

(That is from an 1851 book called “Hymnarium Vesperale.”)

About Jeff Ostrowski

A theorist, organist, and conductor, Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004), and did graduate work in Musicology. He serves as choirmaster for the new FSSP parish in Los Angeles, where he resides with his wife and children.

Too much music!

Choosing music for the Sacred Music Symposium requires careful consideration. We make sure (always) to have great variety. Because the schedule is so full, there’s never sufficient time to discuss the music fully—indeed, we could easily do a month-long seminar on each piece! For example, last year Dr. Calabrese conducted a setting of the Magnificat by Father Guerrero (d. 1599). It is one of the most magnificent (pardon the pun) pieces ever written, and I wish I had time to point out the brilliant way he syncopates the word “dispersit,” which means “He has scattered” or “He has dispersed.” Superb!

—Jeff Ostrowski

“Sharing Is Caring”

I would like to share a message from a highly respected scholar. (His articles appear in distinguished journals such as Études grégoriennes and Oxford’s Early Music.) He wrote as follows:

The Brébeuf Hymnal is very tastefully done. Your team has exquisite literary and musical taste. I see from my copy of the hymnal that you also set Ex more docti to “Rockingham” (one of my favorite melodies for “When I survey the wondrous cross”). I especially appreciate the background information at the bottom of the page. When I played at the Lutheran church, I would always have a little note about the music, sometimes about a hymn, if the “Hymnal Companion” offered something of interest. The church we attend has battered Worship II hymnals (one per pew), but almost nobody seems to want to sing. I congratulate you on the staggering amount of work it took to produce the Brébeuf hymnal: excellent contents and production.

—Jeff Ostrowski

What Frightens Me

The world’s experts have been releasing contradictory statements Re: Covid-19. I am neither a doctor nor a scientist, so I won’t comment; but I have something to say about the spine-tingling predictions made by certain politicians. When I was growing up, they told us “within ten years” we would starve due to overpopulation. The next year, they said “within ten years” we would fry due to global warming. The next year, they told us “within ten years” the oceans would have no fish because of overfishing. The next year, they told us “within ten years” the deficit would become unsustainable and we’d all go bankrupt. The next year, they told us “within ten years” there would be no clean water due to pollution. None of these things happened.

I believe in taking every precaution. I urge our readers to take Covid-19 seriously. At the same time, we have an obligation to consider the effects of our “reaction”—yet few seem to be doing this. And that really scares me.

—Jeff Ostrowski