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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

Our Editorial Policy

Corpus Christi Watershed · July 22, 2023

UST BECAUSE YOU SEE something published on our website, that doesn’t mean all our contributors agree with it. Nor does it de facto mean our editorial team endorses it. In the olden days, music journals often published opposing viewpoints. Here at Corpus Christi Watershed, we sometimes follow that tradition. Needless to say, we would never permit views contrary to the holy Catholic Faith—but when it comes to musical matters, we don’t rule out opposing views. If somebody is bothered by disagreements (e.g. disagreements over plainsong rhythm) it might be best to skip those articles. Our volunteers have produced something like 40,000 Pdf scores, Mp3 files, and rehearsal videos. Therefore, there’s plenty of variety for everyone to enjoy on our blog! Over the years, we’ve received beautiful messages of encouragement. These emails mean more to us than you’ll ever know.

Hate Mail • We’ve also received enormous amounts of hate mail. For instance, several years ago, an email we sent said THANK YOU to readers who’d generously given us donations. In response, someone accused us of “attacking people in nursing homes unable to provide financial support for your efforts.” For years, we received acrimonious messages from a gentleman angry our articles refer to the CLOSING HYMN as a RECESSIONAL. According to this person, there’s no such word. He told us countless times: “One can only process to and from the Altar; one cannot recess from the Altar.” And here’s a message in response to an article on plainsong interpretation (!) we published:

If you ever gaslight me in any way ever again, it won’t be good. Back off. Hold yourself accountable for all the atrocities that you have committed against humanity. Other than apologize and making the wrong right you can zip it. **** off.

Anyone on the internet knows hate mail “goes with the territory”—and this is nothing compared to what our Savior suffered for our sins. Nevertheless, by reading these examples, perhaps you can understand better why cherish we the messages of encouragement sent to us.

Submitting a Guest Article:

We welcome guest submissions! (Remember that not every submission will be published.)

Formatting Your Submission • We have good reasons for our requirements. We want your article to look sensational. You’ve probably noticed our blog entries are usually tiny “works of art”—rather than “cut and paste.” If you employ special formatting, your article might have a greater chance of being rejected. Please avoid any special formatting. By “special formatting,” we mean text that has been aligned to the right or center, funky line spacing, footnotes, endnotes, and/or anything else that won’t display correctly on the various web browsers (and iPhones) that read our blog articles. However, if it is absolutely necessary, you may include a paragraph or so in blockquote:   <blockquote></blockquote> Your submission ought to look like this. On our blog, it will actually turn out like this.

Final Reminders • Please send a picture along with your submission. If you don’t have a picture, please indicate what sort of picture you’d like, and we’ll take care of the rest. Using bold letters, underlined text, or colored text is not allowed. If you wish to emphasize a particular idea, careful and skilled writing will suffice. It is allowed to use italics, but you must add them yourself, using the following code:   <em></em> Your blog submission ought to be sent to us in one of the following formats:

(a) .TXT document  (b) .DOC file  (c) .PDF document

Please email your submissions to us: chabanel@ccwatershed.org.

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

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: July 23, 2023

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President’s Corner

    PDF Download • “Organ Accompaniment”
    Over the past few years, I’ve been harmonizing all the vernacular plainsong Introit settings by the CHAUMONOT COMPOSERS GROUP. This coming Sunday—10 May 2026—is the 6th Sunday of Easter (Year A). The following declaration will probably smack of “blowing my own horn.” However, I’d rank this accompaniment as my best yet. In this rehearsal video, I attempt to sing it while simultaneously accompanying myself on the pipe organ. The musical score [for singers] as well as my organ accompaniment can be downloaded free of charge from the flourishing feasts website.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Gregorian Chant Quiz” • 4 May 2026
    A few days ago, the CORPUS CHRISTI WATERSHED Facebook page posted this Gregorian Chant quiz regarding a rubric for the SEQUENCE for the feast of Corpus Christi: “Lauda Sion Salvatórem.” There is no audience more intelligent than ours—yet surprisingly nobody has been able to guess the rubric. Drop me an email with the right answer, and I’ll affirm your brilliance to everyone I encounter!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Rare Photographs” • Hannibal Bugnini
    On 2 September 2025, we included in this article extremely rare photographs of Archbishop Hannibal Bugnini taken in Iran circa 1979. Bugnini had initially been banished by the pope to Uruguay, but he refused to obey. [This is interesting, since Bugnini relied upon ‘blind obedience’ when it came to modifications of the ancient liturgy.] After he refused to obey the order from the pope, Hannibal Bugnini was banished to Iran. You can also watch a short video of Hannibal Bugnini in Iran, dated 10 November 1979. That’s about a week after the USA embassy hostage crisis began in Tehran, and Pope Saint John Paul II had sent the leader of the Iranian Revolution a special letter.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “Reminder” — Month of May (2026)
    On a daily basis, I speak to people who don’t realize we publish a free newsletter (although they’ve followed our blog for years). We have no endowment, no major donors, no savings, and refuse to run annoying ads. As a result, our mailing list is crucial to our survival. It couldn’t be easier to subscribe! Just scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Simplified Version • “Canon in D” (Pachelbel)
    I published an article on 11 November 2023 called Wedding March For The Lazy Organist, which rather offhandedly made reference to a simplified version I created in 2007 for Pachelbel’s Canon. I often use it as a PROCESSIONAL for weddings and quinceañeras. Many organists say they “hate” Pachelbel’s Canon. But I love it. I think it’s bright and beautiful. I created that ‘simplified version’ for musicians coming to grips with playing the pipe organ. It can be downloaded as a free PDF if you visit Andrea Leal’s article dated 15 August 2022: Manuals Only: Organ Interludes Based on Plainsong. Specifically, it is page 84 in that collection—generously offered as a free PDF download. Johann Pachelbel (d. 1706) was a renowned German organist, violinist, teacher, and composer of over 500 works. A friend of Bach’s family, he taught Johann Christoph Bach (Sebastian Bach’s eldest brother) and lived in his house. Those who read Pachelbel’s biography will notice his connection to two German cities adopted as famous hymn tune names: EISENACH and ERFURT.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • “Anima Christi”
    I received a request for an organ accompaniment I created way back in 2007 for the “Anima Christi” Gregorian Chant. You can download this PDF file which has the score in plainsong followed by a keyboard accompaniment. Many melodies have been paired with “Anima Christi” over the centuries, but this is—perhaps—the most common one.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“A father cannot introduce mistrust and division among his faithful children. He cannot humiliate some by setting them against others. He cannot ostracize some of his priests. The peace and unity that the Church claims to offer to the world must first be lived within the Church. ”

— Cardinal Sarah (14 August 2021)

Recent Posts

  • “Reminder” — Month of May (2026)
  • “Englished” Gregorian Chant • 5 Considerations
  • Simplified Version • “Canon in D” (Pachelbel)
  • PDF Download • “Organ Accompaniment”
  • “Gregorian Chant Quiz” • 4 May 2026

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Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 public charity dedicated to exploring and embodying as our calling the relationship of religion, culture, and the arts. This non-profit organization employs the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.