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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

“Imagine You’re Out of Rehearsal Time but Desperately Need a Hymn for Advent…”

Corrinne May · November 19, 2024

NE OF THE FIRST JOBS I took on after graduating from the Berklee College of Music in Boston and moving out west to Los Angeles involved teaching children at a music school. On that very first lesson, I sang them the ‘Alphabet Song’ and then sang them ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’. Then I just played the melody on the piano and asked them to guess which song I was playing. Some shouted ‘Twinkle Twinkle!’ others yelled ‘Alphabet Song’. After a couple of rounds of ‘Guess which song?’ I asked them if they realized they were singing the same melody and that the only difference in those two songs was that the lyrics had changed. Their little eyes gleamed and their jaws dropped in that childlike way when kids realise that they just level-upped without any effort.1

Practical Crossover • That’s what it is like to sing with a common melody approach. This approach has helped me many times with my volunteer ensemble, the IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY CHOIR in Singapore. It means that we can learn one melody—with all the harmonies for SATB—and as the liturgical year continues I can use that same melody but choose a different hymn lyric to fit the liturgical season.

How This Works: “First Example”

The following hymn (‘Solemn Hymn To The Son Of God’) is in 77 77 metre and was written by Father Dominic Popplewell, FSSP. It’s an excellent hymn that can be used throughout the year:

To access this hymn’s media in the Brébeuf Portal, click here.

Crisis Averted! • Now imagine you’ve run out of rehearsal time but desperately need a hymn for the upcoming 1st Sunday of Advent: a hymn that your choir can sing with familiarity and with harmonies in SATB. Voila! Check out this hymn that is perfect for Advent.

To access this hymn’s media in the Brébeuf Portal, click here.

News From Michigan • I see that my colleague, Jeff Ostrowski, has started a volunteer choir at his new position in Michigan. Yesterday, he posted a ‘live’ recording with lyrics—different from either of those mentioned above—using the same ‘shared tune’ I’ve been focusing on. It’s an English translation of Die Parente Temporum, and it looks like he’s made good progress in just a few months:

To access this hymn’s media in the Brébeuf Portal, click here.

How This Works: “More Examples”

Or perhaps you need a hymn to commemorate the Holy Name of Jesus. Here is one you can turn to. All you need to do is just to change its lyrics to the melody I spoke of (see above). You can cut down on rehearsal time because your choir already knows this hymn and all the harmonies that go along with it. Besides, your choir members will love being able to learn their individual voice part with the free rehearsal videos that accompany this hymn, and you can save the time that you would have taken to rehearse those voice parts. Use that extra time to read a wonderful book like ‘The Spirit of the Liturgy’ by Pope Benedict XVI. The Brébeuf Hymnal also makes it easy for me to look up countless other options for hymn melodies. If I didn’t want this particular melody for the lyrics that I chose, I can always turn to the Brébeuf metrical index. Look for 77 77 and go through many other options for other tunes: ORIENTIS PARTIBUS; LLANFAIR; CULBACH; and so forth. (If the common melody approach is new to you, it’s best to initially begin with options written out in the Brébeuf Hymnal.) Here’s one for Easter with English translation by Robert Campbell of Skerrington, the same man who translated from Latin CONDITOR ALME SIDERUM (the hymn that we first looked at #194). With all these choices, it’s often hard to know which hymn to choose. Thank goodness there’s always the next liturgical season!

Personal Note • I should probably mention that I had such fun recording the vocals for the rehearsal videos of Hymn #194. I sang Soprano and Alto for the individual rehearsal videos.

1 Speaking of the ALPHABET SONG, did you know the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal features a very special hymn wherein the author of the lyric wrote each new stanza beginning with a new alphabet? Every verse of the ABECEDARIUS by Sedulius (who lived in the 5th century) starts with a successive letter of the alphabet.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Common Hymn Melodies Last Updated: November 19, 2024

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About Corrinne May

Corrinne May is one of Singapore’s most celebrated singer-songwriters. She is also a wife and homeschooling mother.—(Read full biography).

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President’s Corner

    “Equal Voices” Choir Pieces
    My colleague, CORRINNE MAY, has posted some delightful compositions for equal voices: that is, choirs consisting of all men or all women. Included there are settings of the “Ave Maria” and “Tantum Ergo.” They strike me as relatively simple and not excessively lengthy. (In other words, within reach of volunteer singers.) Even better, all the scores have been made available as instant PDF downloads, completely free of charge. Bravo!
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Typo in the “Missale Romanum” (1962)
    The 1962 MISSALE ROMANUM was a transitional missal. It was on its way to becoming the 1970 version, but wasn’t there yet. It eliminated certain duplications, downplayed the Prayers at the Foot of the Altar, expanded the role of laymen, minimized the Last Gospel, made many items optional, and so forth. Father Valentine Young spotted many typos in the 1962 MISSALE ROMANUM, especially incorrect accents. The Offertory Antiphon for this coming Sunday (OF kalendar) contains an error, citing the wrong verse from Psalm 118. It should be 118:107b, not 118:154. If you read verse 154, you’ll understand how that error crept in. [In this particular case, the error pre-dates the 1962 Missal, since the 1940s hand-missal by Father Lasance also gets it wrong.]
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 30th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 26 October 2025, which is the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. As always, the Responsorial Psalm, Gospel Acclamation, and Mass Propers for this Sunday are conveniently stored at the top-notch feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “Our Father” • Musical Setting?
    Looking through a Roman Catholic Hymnal published in 1859 by Father Guido Maria Dreves (d. 1909), I stumbled upon this very beautiful tune (PDF file). I feel it would be absolutely perfect to set the “Our Father” in German to music. Thoughts?
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
    My pastor requested that I write short articles each week for our parish bulletin. Those responsible for preparing similar write-ups may find a bit of inspiration in these brief columns. The latest article (dated 12 October 2025) talks about an ‘irony’ or ‘paradox’ regarding the 1960s switch to a wider use (amplior locus) of vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
    The American Catholic Hymnal, with IMPRIMATUR granted (25 April 1991) by the Archdiocese of Chicago, is like a compendium of every horrible idea from the 1980s. Imagine being forced to stand all through Communion (even afterwards) when those self-same ‘enlightened’ liturgists moved the SEQUENCE before the Alleluia to make sure congregations wouldn’t have to stand during it. (Even worse, everything about the SEQUENCE—including its name—means it should follow the Alleluia.) And imagine endlessly repeating “Alleluia” during Holy Communion at every single Mass. It was all part of an effort to convince people that Holy Communion was historically a procession (which it wasn’t).
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“Indeed, we may not hope for real Latin poetry any more, because Latin is now a dead language to all of us. However well a man may read, write, or even speak Latin now, it is always a foreign language to him, acquired artificially. It is no one’s mother tongue. Does a man ever write real poetry in an acquired language?”

— Rev’d Adrian Fortescue (d. 1923)

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  • Typo in the “Missale Romanum” (1962)

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