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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

Organ Accompaniments for the Campion Hymnal

St. Edmund Campion Missal and Hymnal · July 1, 2013

Remember! This page is from 2013.

ORGANIST VOL. 1   •   388 pages, spiral bound
— Complete Kyriale   •   $37.99

Contents:   Three (3) different harmonizations of the Ordinarium Missae are included in our book:
1.) Achille P. Bragers, LOW KEY;
2.) Carlo Rossini, MIDDLE KEY;
3.) Nova Organi Harmonia, HIGH KEY.

For purposes of comparison:   Other merchants sell the Bragers Kyriale (alone!) for $38.


ORGANIST VOL. 2   •   374 pages, spiral bound
— Hymns & Simple Chants   •   $44.95

Contents:   1.) Organ accompaniments for all the Hymns in Campion Hymnal;   2.) Additional transpositions and alternate harmonizations for many of the hymns;   3.) Information on interpreting the Vatican Edition rhythm;   4.) Organ accompaniments for the “Simple Chants” in the Campion Hymnal.

For purposes of comparison:   GIA sells their “Gather Comprehensive” accompaniment book for $105.   OCP sells their “Journeysongs Third Edition” accompaniment book for $110.   GIA sells their “Worship Fourth Edition” accompaniment book for $115.

To sing SATB versions of the hymns, please use the harmonizations provided in the Organist Edition. Permission is hereby given to xerox copy individual pages, as long as such copies are used in accordance with this goal (and not shared for any other purpose).

A NOTE ABOUT HYMN HARMONIZATIONS :

The “perfect” hymn harmonization does not exist. Harmonizations must be chosen according to: 1.) skill of the organist; 2.) acoustic of the Church; 3.) type of choir; 4.) needs of the congregation; 5.) amount of verses to be sung; 6.) time of day (lower for morning, higher for evening); and a thousand other important considerations. For this reason, we included the “standard” harmonization for each hymn. We also included transpositions for more than half of the hymns (based on range and tessitura, which, incidentally, are not the same thing). Furthermore, we included alternate harmonizations when this seemed appropriate.

 

* * *  Take advantage of coupons that give you 20% or even 30% off your entire order!  Click here.


* *  To understand the video above, you need to know how to “right click.”   If you don’t know how to right click, here’s a 30 second video explaining how.

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

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: December 23, 2020

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Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    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’ with regard to 1960s switch to vernacular in the liturgy.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
    Those who don’t sign up for our free EMAIL NEWSLETTER miss important notifications. Last week, for example, I sent a message about this job opening for a music director paying $65,000 per year plus benefits (plus weddings & funerals). Notice the job description says: “our vision for sacred music is to move from singing at Mass to truly singing the Mass wherein … especially the propers, ordinaries, and dialogues are given their proper place.” Signing up couldn’t be easier: simply scroll to the bottom of any blog article and enter your email address.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Music List” • 27th in Ordinary Time (Year C)
    Readers have expressed interest in perusing the ORDER OF MUSIC I’ve prepared for 5 October 2025, which is the 27th 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 spectacular feasts website alongside the official texts in Latin. Readers will want to check out the ENTRANCE CHANT posted there, which has a haunting melody (in the DEUTERUS MODE) and extremely powerful text.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    “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
    “Canonic” • Ralph Vaughan Williams
    Fifty years ago, Dr. Theodore Marier made available this clever arrangement (PDF) of “Come down, O love divine” by P. R. Dietterich. The melody was composed in 1906 by Ralph Vaughan Williams (d. 1958) and named in honor of of his birthplace: DOWN AMPNEY. The arrangement isn’t a strict canon, but it does remind one of a canon since the pipe organ employs “points of imitation.” The melody and text are #709 in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Did they simplify these hymn harmonies?
    Choirs love to sing the famous & splendid tune called “INNSBRUCK.” Looking through a (Roman Catholic) German hymnal printed in 1952, I discovered what appears to be a simplified version of that hymn. In other words, their harmonization is much less complex than the version found in the Saint Jean de Brébeuf Hymnal (which is suitable for singing by SATB choir). Please download their 1952 harmonization (PDF) and let me know your thoughts. I really like the groovy Germanic INTRODUCTION they added.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

“The spark of conversion can be struck by a single perfect liturgical gesture.”

— Cristina Campo (1966)

Recent Posts

  • New Bulletin Article • “12 October 2025”
  • “Reminder” — Month of October (2025)
  • “American Catholic Hymnal” (1991)
  • Involving Women in the Communion?
  • “Toward a More Sacred Style With Pastoral Charity” • Guest Article by Dr. Myrna Keough

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