BEGAN WORKING for Corpus Christi Watershed as an employee for $7.50 per hour. Eventually, I was elected president by the board of directors. Like all officers, I serve at the pleasure of the board. (I’m not a board member.) One predominant “mission” or “objective” of mine is to make sure the entire website always remains free, without even requiring a login. Over the years, we have amassed something like 26 million downloads. If we required paid membership, I believe our influence and reach would be severely curtailed.
This Year • This year, we tried an experiment. Sending out letters of acknowledgment to our monthly donors, we included a PDF link to an extremely rare organ accompaniment for a German hymnal (158 pages). The idea was to “reward” our donors by giving them a special gift.
The Future • I realize other websites provide “exclusive content” to those who pay a membership fee. As I’ve already explained, I have always rejected this idea. I feel it’s crucial to offer everything for free. Am I foolish for believing this? It’s certainly possible. Perhaps someday we will offer “premium content”—but I think it would be annoying for folks to have to keep entering a login (especially if they’re trying to access our website from a different device).
Get Your Download • If anyone reading this is willing to sign up as a monthly donor, please contact us via email so we can send you the ‘secret’ link to the PDF file. (Again, the only people who currently have access to it are those who donated in 2024.) The hymnal contains many interesting organ interludes:
The hymnal contains numerous “Singmesse” specimens:
Many hymns from the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal also appear in this rare hymnal. For example, #736 in the Brébeuf matches this one:
Many people know “Omni Die, Dic Mariae” (Daily, daily, sing to Mary), and the German hymnal provides a groovy little introduction:
“Christus Ist Erstanden” is a favorite hymn of singers, as well as composers such as Sebastian Bach, Heinrich Schütz, and Max Reger :
Conclusion • If you value what we offer on our website, please consider donating $5.00 per month, or even $3.00 per month. We’re a tiny 501(c)3 public charity which exists solely by the generosity of small donors. We have no endowment; we have no major donors; we run no advertisements; we have no savings. Please alert others to what we’re trying to accomplish. Thank you!
