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Jesus said to them: “I have come into this world so that a sentence may fall upon it, that those who are blind should see, and those who see should become blind. If you were blind, you would not be guilty. It is because you protest, ‘We can see clearly,’ that you cannot be rid of your guilt.”

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Views from the Choir Loft

PDF Download • Belgian Book of Gregorian Accompaniments (Official Edition)

Jeff Ostrowski · January 31, 2023

OLIEST PRIEST you ever met? That’s a tough question, but one of the holiest was certainly Father Valentine Young (d. 2020). I remember Father Valentine once said: “Jeff, I’ve reached a point in my life where I almost enjoy hearing accompanied plainsong more than unaccompanied.” That statement was two decades ago. At that point in my life, such a statement constituted formal heresy. You see, I used to believe the only ‘valid’ way to sing Gregorian Chant was a cappella (“without accompaniment”). But after almost three decades of singing plainsong, I have come to realize that a well-written accompaniment can add great beauty.1 The following is a recording from last Sunday. You will notice I accompanied our volunteer choir using the NOH harmonies:

Direct Link.

Rare Belgian Book • Corpus Christi Watershed has obtained an extremely rare book of organ accompaniments for Belgium. Readers probably know that each country has special feasts, often celebrating local saints. Interesting items abound in this book. For instance, they wrote an accompaniment for the enormously lengthy SEQUENCE for Saint Lambert of Maastricht (Bishop and Martyr). They wrote an accompaniment for the famous “Gaudeámus” Introit—for the feast of Saint Rumbold of Mechlin—which organists will which to compare with the other “Gaudeámus” harmonizations the LEMMENSINSTITUUT provided in the other volumes.

*  PDF Download • VOLUME VI (“Propers for Belgium”)
—Vol. 6 contains “special propers for the dioceses of Belgium” • 129 pages.

Upcoming Presentation • During this year’s Sacred Music Symposium—which will take place in June of 2023—I will be giving a presentation which will demonstrate (using multiple examples) that excellent Gregorian accompaniments employ the self-same techniques used by the great composers. Monsignor Jules Van Nuffel once wrote:

“A flawless harmonization of Gregorian chant cannot be created by improvisation, no matter the competence and ability of the organist or harmonist.”

Please Help Us • We desire to provide professional and pristine scans for other volumes of the NOH, especially VOLUME V, which contains the Ordinary of the Mass. But professional scans cost a lot of money. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity. We exist solely by the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment; we have no major donors; we run no advertisements; we have no savings. We beg you to consider donating $5.00 per month, or even $3.00 per month.

1 So much depends upon the choir, the acoustic, and each situation. For instance, if I am singing the Requiem Mass with superb singers, I would be annoyed if somebody tried to add an accompaniment to our singing.

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

Filed Under: Articles, Featured, PDF Download Tagged With: Rev Fr Valentine Young OFM Last Updated: January 31, 2023

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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

    Is the USCCB trolling us?
    I realize I’m going to come across as a “Negative Nancy” … but I can’t help myself. This kind of stuff is beyond ridiculous. There are already way too many options in the MISSALE RECENS. Adding more will simply confuse the faithful even more. We seriously need to band together and start creating a “REFORM OF THE REFORM” Missale Romanum so it will be ready when the time comes.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Common” Responsorial Psalm?
    I try to avoid arguing about liturgical legislation (even with Catholic priests) because it seems like many folks hold certain views—and nothing will persuade them to believe differently. You can show them 100 church documents, but it matters not. They won’t budge. Sometimes I’m confronted by people who insist that “there’s no such thing” as a COMMON RESPONSORIAL PSALM. When that happens, I show them a copy of the official legislation in Latin. I have occasionally prevailed by means of this method.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 5th Sunday of Easter (Year C)
    Some have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I prepared for the 5th Sunday of Easter (18 May 2025). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. The Communion Antiphon was ‘restored’ the 1970 Missale Romanum (a.k.a. MISSALE RECENS) from an obscure martyr’s feast. Our choir is on break this Sunday, so the selections are relatively simple in nature.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    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
    When to Sit, Stand and Kneel like it’s 1962
    There are lots of different guides to postures for Mass, but I couldn’t find one which matched our local Latin Mass, so I made this one: sit-stand-kneel-crop
    —Veronica Brandt
    The Funeral Rites of the Graduale Romanum
    Lately I have been paging through the 1974 Graduale Romanum (see p. 678 ff.) and have been fascinated by the funeral rites found therein, especially the simply-beautiful Psalmody that is appointed for all the different occasions before and after the funeral Mass: at the vigil/wake, at the house of the deceased, processing to the church, at the church, processing to the cemetery, and at the cemetery. Would that this “stational Psalmody” of the Novus Ordo funeral rites saw wider usage! If you or anyone you know have ever used it, please do let me know.
    —Daniel Tucker

Random Quote

“The revision of the liturgical books must carefully attend to the provision of rubrics also for the people’s parts.”

— The Second Vatican Council (SC §31)

Recent Posts

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  • “For me, Gregorian chant at the Mass was much more consonant with what the Mass truly is…” —Bp. Earl Fernandes

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