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Pope Saint Paul VI (3 April 1969): “Although the text of the Roman Gradual—at least that which concerns the singing—has not been changed, the Entrance antiphons and Communions antiphons have been revised for Masses without singing.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

Archives for May 2020

Veronica Moreno · May 9, 2020

Is Liturgy Essential?

A mother recounts her son’s yearning for a return to Holy Communion and she reflects on our absolute necessity for the Sacrifice of the Holy Mass.

Jeff Ostrowski · May 9, 2020

Wedding Homily (7 min) by Fr. Valentine Young

“The late Archbishop Sheen once pointed out how the Greeks in their language had three different words for love…”

Richard J. Clark · May 8, 2020

Pain, Trauma, Caution in the Choir World

Fallout from the recent NATS/ACDA webinar: A Conversation: What Do Science and Data Say About the Near Term Future of Singing.

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Jeff Ostrowski · May 7, 2020

Stunning Harmonies! • “Hail, Holy Queen Enthroned Above” (Hymn #783)

This has been called the “incomparable and indispensable” hymnal for Catholics.

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Jeff Ostrowski · May 6, 2020

What is the “Ordinary” of the Mass?

A few years ago—during the Sacred Music Symposium—I suggested to the audience that the “Our Father” and the “Alleluia” should be considered part of the Ordinary of the Mass (for the Ordinary Form). In my own settings, such as Mass of the English Martyrs, I treated the “Our Father” accordingly—and here in Los Angeles, we […]

Jeff Ostrowski · May 6, 2020

Blog Contributors Speak About A “Favorite” Piece

This is a good way to get to know several contributors a little better!

Dr. Lucas Tappan · May 5, 2020

What Makes a Great Conductor?

At the heart of the great conductor is one who is born in wonder, one who stands in awe and amazement of heaven’s divine gift of music.

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Jeff Ostrowski · May 5, 2020

“Pange Lingua” translated into English • Hymn by Saint Thomas Aquinas

I predict this smooth harmonization will go down in history—it fits the voice perfectly.

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Keven Smith · May 4, 2020

Bring Your “Lost Motets” to Life

I can think of at least five reasons to use the current downtime as an opportunity to educate your parish about sacred music. And it doesn’t take much work.

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Fr. David Friel · May 3, 2020

Throwing Away Our Birthright of Beauty

Thoughts from St. Athanasius the Great

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Wilfrid Jones · May 2, 2020

Unveiling the songs of hope: fr Timothy Radcliffe op

One of the most significant thinkers in the Church today shares his thoughts on, and experiences of, music as a source of hope in the darkest of times. When we face death, we respond in song.

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Veronica Brandt · May 2, 2020

Saints Stories from 3 Priests in Australia

Three priests taking their teaching ministry online during the current restrictions.

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Jeff Ostrowski · May 2, 2020

The best 5 seconds in Gregorian Chant…

“No concession should ever be made for the singing of the Exultet, in whole or in part, in the vernacular.” — Fr. Augustin Bea

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Jeff Ostrowski · May 2, 2020

Being Too Hard On Priests?

I’m usually a stickler when it comes to making sure priests sing their chants correctly, especially when priests often substitute a Perfect Fourth for the Minor Third in the famous Triple Alleluia on Holy Saturday. But I just found out the 1575AD Missale Romanum has a skip of a Perfect Fifth! So perhaps I need to […]

Daniel Tucker · May 2, 2020

Biography • Daniel Tucker

Mr. Tucker went on to Yale University, from which he graduated in May 2020 with a Master’s degree in choral conducting and a certificate from the Yale Institute of Sacred Music.

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Music List • (3rd Sunday of Lent)
    Readers have expressed interest in seeing the ORDER OF MUSIC I created for this coming Sunday, which is the 3rd Sunday of Lent (8 March 2026). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. This feast has magnificent propers. Its stern INTROIT (“Óculi mei semper ad Dóminum”) is breathtaking, and the COMMUNION (“Qui bíberit aquam”) with its fauxbourdon verses is wonderful. I encourage all the readers to visit the feasts website, where the Propria Missae may be downloaded completely free of charge.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Samaritánæ” (3rd Sunday of Lent)
    With regard to the COMMUNION for the 3rd Sunday of Lent (Year A), the Ordo Cantus Missae—which was published in 1969 by the Vatican, bearing Hannibal Bugnini’s signature and approbation in its PREFACE—inexplicably introduced a variant melody and slightly different words, as you can see by this comparison chart. When it comes to such items, they’re always done in secrecy by unnamed people. (Although it is known that Dom Eugène Cardine collaborated in the creation of the GRADUALE SIMPLEX, a book considered by some to be a travesty.)
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • “Ubi Caritas” (SATB)
    I remember singing “Ubi Cáritas” by Maurice Duruflé at the conservatory. I was deeply moved by it. However, some feel Duruflé’s version isn’t suitable for small choirs since it’s written for 6 voices and the bass tessitura is quite low. That’s why I was absolutely thrilled to discover this “Ubi cáritas” (SATB) for smaller choirs by Énemond Moreau, who studied with OSCAR DEPUYDT (d. 1925), an orphan who became a towering figure of Catholic music. Depuydt’s students include: Flor Peeters (d. 1986); Monsignor Jules Van Nuffel (d. 1953); Arthur Meulemans (d. 1966); Monsignor Jules Vyverman (d. 1989); and Gustaaf Nees (d. 1965). Rehearsal videos for each individual voice await you at #19705. When I came across the astonishing English translation for “Ubi Cáritas” by Monsignor Ronald Knox—matching the Latin’s meter—I decided to add those lyrics as an option (for churches which have banned Latin). My wife and I made this recording to give you some idea how it sounds.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “Dies Irae” • A Monstrous Translation
    It isn’t easy to determine what Alice King MacGilton hoped to accomplish with her very popular book—A Study of Latin Hymns (1918)—which continued to be reprinted in new editions for at least 34 years. This PDF file shows her attempt to translate the DIES IRAE “in the fewest words possible.” There’s a place for dynamic equivalency, but this is repugnant. In particular, look what she does to “Quærens me sedísti lassus.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • “Holy, Holy, Holy”
    For vigil Masses on Saturday (a.k.a. “anticipated” Masses) we use this simpler setting of the “Holy, Holy, Holy” by Monsignor Jules Vyverman (d. 1989), a Belgian priest, organist, composer, and music educator who ultimately succeeded another ‘Jules’ (CANON JULES VAN NUFFEL) as director of the Lemmensinstituut in Belgium. Although I could be wrong, my understanding is that the LEMMENSINSTITUUT eventually merged with “Catholic University of Leuven” (originally founded in 1425). That’s the university Fulton J. Sheen attended.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Grotesque Pairing • “Passion Chorale”
    One of our rarest releases was undoubtably this PDF scan of the complete Pope Pius XII Hymnal (1959) by Father Joseph Roff, a student of Healey Willan. One of the scarcest titles in existence, this book was provided to us by Mr. Peter Meggison. Back in 2018, we scanned each page and uploaded it to our website, making it freely available to everyone. Readers are probably sick of hearing me say this, but just because we upload something that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s wonderful or worthy of imitation. We upload many publications precisely because they are ‘grotesque’, interesting, or revealing. Whereas the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal had an editorial board that was careful and sensitive vis-à-vis pairing texts with tunes, the Pope Pius XII Hymnal (1959) seems to have been rather reckless in this regard. Please take a look at what they did with the PASSION CHORALE and see whether you agree.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“To get people together once a week without an objective is deadly.”

— Dr. Roger Wagner (19 December 1960)

Recent Posts

  • “Dies Irae” • A Monstrous Translation
  • PDF Download • “Holy, Holy, Holy”
  • Music List • (3rd Sunday of Lent)
  • “National Survey” (Order of Christian Funerals) • By the USCCB Secretariat of Divine Worship
  • “Samaritánæ” (3rd Sunday of Lent)

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