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Corpus Christi Watershed

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

Corpus Christi Watershed

Corpus Christi Watershed · March 12, 2025

“I Hate, Loathe, and Utterly Despise the Trivial Details of Ceremonies.” —Father Adrian Fortescue

“I want never to hear another word about ceremonies for as long as I live. I would rather discuss the symptoms of cancer.” —Dr. Fortescue

Corpus Christi Watershed · March 11, 2025

Our Own Richard J. Clark Conducts 250 Children in Chant & Polyphony!

Reclaiming Gregorian Chant for children at the New England “Pueri Cantores” choral festival & Mass.

Corpus Christi Watershed · February 25, 2025

Famous Italian Actor Regrets Aborting Son

“It was the mistake of my life. When I was very young, I had the chance to become a father, but I had my son aborted. Now, I’ve become very strongly against abortion.” —Andrea Roncato

Corpus Christi Watershed · February 17, 2025

“The Sad State of Liturgical Music in the Catholic Church” • Thomas G. McFaul (2002)

“Nothing in pop music ever sounded quite as loathsome as what is played and sung in the church today.” —Thomas G. McFaul

Corpus Christi Watershed · February 10, 2025

Monsignor Ronald Knox—His Actual Voice!—Speaks of Saint John Henry Newman (1948)

It is beyond fascinating to hear his actual voice.

Corpus Christi Watershed · February 7, 2025

“Win or Lose, a Fight Worth Fighting!” • (Email Received from a Priest)

We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to Jeffrey Tucker, who prevented a non-Christian company from securing a monopoly on the (mandatory) English psalm translation!

Corpus Christi Watershed · February 5, 2025

Abbey Psalms & Canticles • Copyright?

Confusion, Controversy, and Contradiction rules the day.

Corpus Christi Watershed · February 4, 2025

Antiphons Don’t Match?

The short answer is: the “Adalbert Propers” were never intended to be sung.

Corpus Christi Watershed · February 3, 2025

“Jeff, Your Assertions Are False and Misleading”

“This is a false assertion: one I’ve never heard, read about, or heard organ builders discuss.” —Kyle H.

Corpus Christi Watershed · January 30, 2025

Reader Feedback • Re: “Simplified” Music (Part 2)

“I haven’t been doing parish music that long—only about 3 years at this point.” —Celeste M.

Corpus Christi Watershed · January 30, 2025

“Entrance Chant” (Feast of the Presentation, 2 Febr.) • Sung by Three Young Women

This ‘live’ video shows three young women singing…

Corpus Christi Watershed · January 27, 2025

Photograph • Mass at Dachau Concentration Camp

Is that a tiny pipe organ?

Corpus Christi Watershed · January 24, 2025

Reader Feedback • Re: “Simplified” Organ Music

I’ve lived through various pendulum swings: the “Glory and Praise” phase; the “hymn sandwich” phase; and the “baroque tracker organ” phase.

Corpus Christi Watershed · January 23, 2025

“How To Prepare A Talk” • Bishop Fulton J. Sheen

A television broadcast from the 1960s.

Corpus Christi Watershed · January 13, 2025

“What A Choral Conductor Must Know” • Interview with Dr. John Paul Johnson

Dr. John Paul Johnson—a frequent guest conductor at Carnegie Hall—served as a conductor-in-residence at the Trinity College of Music (London).

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Good Friday Flowers
    Good Friday has a series of prayers for various parties: the pope, catechumens, pagans, heretics, schismatics, and so forth. In the old liturgical books, there was no official ‘name’ for these prayers. (This wasn’t unusual as ‘headers’ and ‘titles’ for each section is a rather modern idea.) The Missal simply instructed the priest to go to the Epistle side and begin. In the SHERBORNE MISSAL, each prayer begins with a different—utterly spectacular—flower. This PDF file shows the first few prayers. Has anyone counted the ‘initial’ drop-cap flowers in the SHERBORNE MISSAL? Surely there are more than 1,000.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Music List • (3rd Sunday of Lent)
    Readers have expressed interest in seeing the ORDER OF MUSIC I created for this coming Sunday, which is the 3rd Sunday of Lent (8 March 2026). If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. This feast has magnificent propers. Its stern INTROIT (“Óculi mei semper ad Dóminum”) is breathtaking, and the COMMUNION (“Qui bíberit aquam”) with its fauxbourdon verses is wonderful. I encourage all the readers to visit the feasts website, where the Propria Missae may be downloaded completely free of charge.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • “Ubi Caritas” (SATB)
    I remember singing “Ubi Cáritas” by Maurice Duruflé at the conservatory. I was deeply moved by it. However, some feel Duruflé’s version isn’t suitable for small choirs since it’s written for 6 voices and the bass tessitura is quite low. That’s why I was absolutely thrilled to discover this “Ubi cáritas” (SATB) for smaller choirs by Énemond Moreau, who studied with OSCAR DEPUYDT (d. 1925), an orphan who became a towering figure of Catholic music. Depuydt’s students include: Flor Peeters (d. 1986); Monsignor Jules Van Nuffel (d. 1953); Arthur Meulemans (d. 1966); Monsignor Jules Vyverman (d. 1989); and Gustaaf Nees (d. 1965). Rehearsal videos for each individual voice await you at #19705. When I came across the astonishing English translation for “Ubi Cáritas” by Monsignor Ronald Knox—matching the Latin’s meter—I decided to add those lyrics as an option (for churches which have banned Latin). My wife and I made this recording to give you some idea how it sounds.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “Dies Irae” • A Monstrous Translation
    It isn’t easy to determine what Alice King MacGilton hoped to accomplish with her very popular book—A Study of Latin Hymns (1918)—which continued to be reprinted in new editions for at least 34 years. This PDF file shows her attempt to translate the DIES IRAE “in the fewest words possible.” There’s a place for dynamic equivalency, but this is repugnant. In particular, look what she does to “Quærens me sedísti lassus.”
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    PDF Download • “Holy, Holy, Holy”
    For vigil Masses on Saturday (a.k.a. “anticipated” Masses) we use this simpler setting of the “Holy, Holy, Holy” by Monsignor Jules Vyverman (d. 1989), a Belgian priest, organist, composer, and music educator who ultimately succeeded another ‘Jules’ (CANON JULES VAN NUFFEL) as director of the Lemmensinstituut in Belgium. Although I could be wrong, my understanding is that the LEMMENSINSTITUUT eventually merged with “Catholic University of Leuven” (originally founded in 1425). That’s the university Fulton J. Sheen attended.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Grotesque Pairing • “Passion Chorale”
    One of our rarest releases was undoubtably this PDF scan of the complete Pope Pius XII Hymnal (1959) by Father Joseph Roff, a student of Healey Willan. One of the scarcest titles in existence, this book was provided to us by Mr. Peter Meggison. Back in 2018, we scanned each page and uploaded it to our website, making it freely available to everyone. Readers are probably sick of hearing me say this, but just because we upload something that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s wonderful or worthy of imitation. We upload many publications precisely because they are ‘grotesque’, interesting, or revealing. Whereas the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal had an editorial board that was careful and sensitive vis-à-vis pairing texts with tunes, the Pope Pius XII Hymnal (1959) seems to have been rather reckless in this regard. Please take a look at what they did with the PASSION CHORALE and see whether you agree.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“We must strip from our Catholic prayers and from the Catholic liturgy everything which can be the shadow of a stumbling block for our separated brethren—that is, for the Protestants.”

— Monsignor Annibale Bugnini (March, 1965) in L’Osservatore Romano

Recent Posts

  • Most “Congregational” Hymn • (In My Experience)
  • Music is the “Humble Handmaid” of the Mass
  • Good Friday Flowers
  • PDF Download • “Entrance Chant” for Holy Thursday (Plainsong in English)
  • “Dies Irae” • A Monstrous Translation

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