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Views from the Choir Loft

“Reader Feedback” • 19 November 2024

Jeff Ostrowski · November 19, 2024

The following came from Beatrice O.
[We usually redact names for anonymity’s sake.]

EAR CCW TEAM: Good morning, I hope this email finds you well. My name is [redacted], and I’m currently gathering materials for a newly ordained priest. Your website has been an invaluable resource in finding materials for singing the Holy Mass in Latin. Thank you for the excellent work you do in preserving and promoting this sacred tradition. For some weeks now, I’ve been searching for musical scores of the Canon Missae in Cantu (“Eucharistic Prayer I”), but unfortunately, I haven’t been able to locate them. I have consulted sources such as GREGOBASE and several PDFs of the GRADUALE ROMANUM, but without success. I’m reaching out in the hope that you might know where I could find these scores. It would mean a great deal to provide this as a gift to my priest friend. Thank you in advance for your assistance, and I greatly appreciate the work you continue to do.

The following is Jeff Ostrowski’s response:
[This response was posted on 19 November 2024.]

The Answer • Beginning on page 1915 of Volume 1 of the special PDF files we posted in 2013, you will find what you seek. Indeed, all four Eucharistic prayers are given there in musical notation.

Jeff’s (Unsolicited) Opinion • That being said, it might be important to remember that it’s quite “untraditional” to sing the Eucharistic Prayer. Throughout the entire history of the Catholic Church this was never done—until the 1970s. Indeed, the person responsible for all the liturgical reforms of the 1960s (viz. CARDINAL LERCARO) declared in a public letter dated 2 March 1965 that priests who pray the Eucharistic Prayer in an audible voice commit an extremely grave liturgical abuse. For many centuries, the Canon was said in a quiet voice: sotto voce. (Cardinal Lercaro was put in charge of all the liturgical reforms by Pope Saint Paul VI.) The 1970s was very much a liturgical low point; the order of the day was “change for the sake of change.” Someday, all this will have to be sorted out.

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

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Cardinal Giacomo Lercaro Consilium President, CCWatershed Feedback, Reader Feedback Corpus Christi Watershed Last Updated: November 19, 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

    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
    Luis Martínez Must Go!
    Sevilla Cathedral (entry dated 13 December 1564): The chapter orders Luis Martínez, a cathedral chaplain, to stay away from the choirbook-stand when the rest of the singers gather around it to sing polyphony—the reason being that “he throws the others out of tune.” [Excerpt from “The Life of Father Francisco Guerrero.”]
    —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

“Always remember: God opposes the proud.” (leaning into the microphone) “…even when they’re right!”

— ‘Scott Hahn, speaking in Plano, TX’

Recent Posts

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  • 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year C)
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  • Boston Auxiliary Bishop: “In offering the Traditional Mass for the first time, after removing the vestments, I knelt in the back pew and wept.”
  • Now Available! • “Hymns of Cardinal Newman: Kevin Allen’s Legendary Choral Settings”

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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.

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