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Views from the Choir Loft

PDF Download • “Salve Regina” (32 Versions)

Jeff Ostrowski · August 8, 2022

EFORE I BEGIN, I should remind readers that this article will make more sense if you watch the 75-minute video I recently posted, which talks about the “blank spaces” in the Chruch’s official edition of Gregorian Chant, as well as the “French Vs. German Trochee.” (Specifically, you’ll want to review the chapter which explains “Trochee trouble.”) Since we’ll be discussing the Salve Regina, let me post two versions before we proceed:

*  PDF Download • SALVE REGINA (French)
—The “normal” way it’s sung • Rhythmic markings by Dom Mocquereau.

*  PDF Download • SALVE REGINA (Germanic)
—The “pure” Editio Vaticana way to sing it.

By the way, if you don’t think Trochee Trouble matters … think again! The French and Germans can’t even agree on how to sing a simple hymn like Ave Maris Stella. Look at the way it’s sung in Teutonic countries.

Most Popular Chant? • What is the most popular piece of plainsong? Many would answer: “The simple version of the Salve Regina.” But where does this piece come from? What is its provenance? I sent this query to Professor Charles Weaver—an expert in Gregorian Chant—and he gave me a few leads, which I deeply appreciate. The famous People’s Mass Book (World Library of Sacred Music, 1964) claims the tune was written by “P. Bourget” and published in Paris circa 1634AD. The following versions will help us understand more:

*  PDF Download • “Simple” Salve Regina (1634AD)

*  “Sálve Regína” Offices de l’Eglise (Reims-Cambrai, 1887)
*  “Sálve Regína” Antiphonale (Pustet, 1892)
*  “Sálve Regína” Liber Usualis (Pothier, 1896)
*  “Sálve Regína” Cantus Varii (Pothier, 1902)
*  “Sálve Regína” Manuale Missæ (Mocquereau, 1902)
*  “Sálve Regína” Liber Usualis (Mocquereau, 1903)
*  “Sálve Regína” Five Lines (Mocquereau, 1921)
*  “Sálve Regína” Modern Notation (Mocquereau, 1924)
*  “Sálve Regína” Kleines Vesperbuch (Schwann, 1928)
*  “Sálve Regína” Antiphonale (Mocquereau, 1949)
*  “Sálve Regína” Msgr. Charles E. Spence (Mocquereau, 1953)
*  “Sálve Regína” Mass & Vespers (Mocquereau, 1957)
*  “Sálve Regína” Vespers Book (Bloomfield, 2021)
*  “Sálve Regína” Graduale Simplex (Vatican Press, 1975)

The earliest instance I can find in the so-called “restored” books would be the 1895 LIBER RESPONSORIALIS:

*  PDF Download • “Sálve Regína” (Liber Responsorialis, 1895)

Out Of Favor • The “simple” version seems to have fallen out of favor from about 1905 until the 1920s. It seems the Editio Vaticana versions (Dom Mocquereau, Dom Pothier, Schwann, Mechlin, Pustet, Styria, and so on) were trying to promote the authentic version, rather than the “simple” version, which dates from the 17th century. Professor Weaver has pointed out that the Pustet version says the “simple” version is in Mode 11 … which is somewhat hilarious. Shades of Glareanus! I am not sure when the first edition of Dom Mocquereau’s Liber Usualis (using the Vatican Edition) appeared, but I suspect it was circa 1924. The INTRODUCTION to the Liber Usualis uses the “simple” version to illustrate how to place the ictus in syllabic chant.

Update (16 December 2022): Actually, the “simple” SALVE REGINA was printed by Father Weinmann as early as 1915.

Seventeen (17) Accompaniments • I am not convinced the “simple” version was ever officially part of the Editio Vaticana, although its inclusion by the Schwann 1928 VESPERALE (see above) militates against this notion. If readers can assist in this regard, please do! As far as I know, nobody ever composed an organ accompaniment for the “simple” version, except those who follow the rhythm of Dom Mocquereau. You can download seventeen (17) organ accompaniments to the “simple” version, all of them following Dom Mocquereau.

Trochee Trouble:

Can You See Them? • How good are your eyes? Can you spot the “trochee trouble” vis-à-vis how the Germans sing this piece? (Remember, there is no “correct” way to treat trochees in the official edition.) I have attempted to highlight them for you by means of various colored boxes:

Consider this Catholic organ book (1952) published Berlin:

More To Come • We will be talking a lot about “trochee trouble” over the next year. On the one hand, it doesn’t make much sense that someone has to purchase a modern notation edition to figure out how to sing the trochees. In 1904, Dom Raphael Molitor of Beuron Abbey—citing a statement by Dr. Peter Wagner, a member of the Vatican Commission on Gregorian Chant—wrote about this subject as follows:

In other places, owing to the varying width of the space between the note-groups, it remains doubtful whether the editor really desired a mora vocis or not. He seems to have felt this uncertainty himself when he wrote on p. VIII: De his omnibus rebus utile erit, transcriptionem in notas musicas modernas hujus libelli consulere (“On all these matters, it will be useful to consult the transcription into modern musical notes of this book”). But what singer will purchase a [book] when he finds he must purchase a second book as a key to the first? Even a choirmaster would scarcely do so.

On the other hand, consider how the monks of Solesmes sing this antiphon:

Gray Area • In that video, did you notice how the monks of Solesmes Abbey treat the trochees of Dom Mocquereau? (Many other examples could be cited; perhaps if I can find the time I can provide more examples.) The Solesmes recording of CREDO I is a good example, but there are others. Abbat Pothier—as I’m sure you’ve observed in the scores which adhere to the “pure” Editio Vaticana—does not have any dots or dashes to show elongated notes. Rather, he gives freedom to each individual choirmaster. Was that smart or foolish? In some ways, it seems foolish. However, the Latin tonic accent must be treated with subtlety and delicacy. As I mentioned, we will be talking about this a lot in the coming months. I encourage readers to weigh in!

Trochee Trouble • There can be no doubt that “Trochee Trouble” is a serious issue. For example, notice how the following examples of the “German School” are not consistent when it comes to the Mode V psalm tone (a truly basic item!):

What We’re Used To • Once you sing something a certain way, it can be very hard to change. For example, consider the way the Germans sing the “Pange Lingua” of Saint Thomas Aquinas:

Addendum • Here’s how the “authentic” Salve Regina looks in an ancient medieval manuscript:

As far as I can tell, during medieval times the prayer always omitted the word “Mater.” But in our times, we say: Salve, Regina, Mater misericordiæ…

Here is the “authentic” (Mode I) version of the SALVE REGINA, as found in the Vatican Edition:

*  PDF Download • SALVE REGINA (Authentic)
—Mode I • Editio Vaticana.

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

Filed Under: Articles, Featured Tagged With: Dr Peter Wagner Gregorian, French Vs German Trochee, Mora Vocis, salve regina, Salve Regina Organ Accompaniment, Trochee Trouble Last Updated: December 10, 2024

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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 Michigan. —(Read full biography).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Simplest “Agnus Dei” Ever Published
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. I needed a relatively simple “Agnus Dei,” so I composed this setting for organ & voice in honor of Saint René Goupil. It has been called the simplest setting ever composed. I love CARMEN GREGORIANUM (“Gregorian Chant”), especially the ALLELUIAS, INTROITS, and COMMUNION ANTIPHONS. That being said, some have pointed out that certain sections of the Kyriale aren’t as strong as the Graduale or Vesperale. There’s a reason for this—but it would be too complicated to explain at this moment.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Our choir is on break during the month of July. However, on the feasts website, the chants have been posted for the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C), which is this coming Sunday: 6 July 2025.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Bugnini’s Statement (6 November 1966)
    With each passing day, more is revealed about how the enemies of the liturgy accomplished their goals. For instance, Hannibal Bugnini deeply resented the way Vatican II said Gregorian Chant “must be given first place in liturgical services.” On 6 November 1966, his cadre wrote a letter attempting to justify the elimination of Gregorian Chant with this brazen statement: “What really gives a Mass its tone is not so much the songs as it is the prayers and readings.” Bugnini’s cadre then attacked the very heart of Gregorian Chant (viz. the Proprium Missae), bemoaning how the Proprium Missae “is completely new each Sunday and feast day.” There is much more to be said about this topic. Stay tuned.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    Pope Pius XII Hymnal?
    Have you ever heard of the Pope Pius XII Hymnal? It’s a real book, published in the United States in 1959. Here’s a sample page so you can verify with your own eyes it existed.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    “Hybrid” Chant Notation?
    Over the years, many have tried to ‘simplify’ plainsong notation. The O’Fallon Propers attempted to simplify the notation—but ended up making matters worse. Dr. Karl Weinmann tried to do the same in the time of Pope Saint Pius X by replacing each porrectus. You can examine a specimen from his edition and see whether you agree he complicated matters. In particular, look at what he did with éxsules fílii Hévae.
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Antiphons Don’t Match?
    A reader wants to know why the Entrance and Communion antiphons in certain publications deviate from what’s prescribed by the GRADUALE ROMANUM published after Vatican II. Click here to read our answer. The short answer is: the Adalbert Propers were never intended to be sung. They were intended for private Masses only (or Masses without music). The “Graduale Parvum,” published by the John Henry Newman Institute of Liturgical Music in 2023, mostly uses the Adalbert Propers—but sometimes uses the GRADUALE text: e.g. Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June).
    —Corpus Christi Watershed

Random Quote

Palestrina wrote two Masses in honor of the Blessed Virgin—one “a 6” before the Council of Trent, consequently with the tropes, and first published in 1570. In 1599 it was republished in Palestrina “Missarum Liber III” with the tropes removed, and in their place the liturgical words of the “Gloria” reiterated.

— Henry Coates

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