• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Corpus Christi Watershed

A monthly subscription fee of $4.95 gives access to the entire website. Thank you for supporting our efforts!

  • Member Log In
    • My Account
    • “Receipts + Invoices” (Subscribers)
  • Our Team
    • Our Editorial Policy
    • Who We Are
    • How To Contact Us
    • Jeff’s Mom Joins Fundraiser
    • “A New Chapter” • Subscriptions!
    • “Choirmaster’s Decalogue” (10 points)
  • Pew Resources
    • Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal
    • Jogues Illuminated Missal
    • Repository • “Spanish Music”
    • KYRIALE • Saint Antoine Daniel
    • Campion Missal, 3rd Edition
  • MUSICAL WEBSITES
    • Secrets of the Conscientious Choirmaster
    • Emporium Kevin Allen
    • Miscellaneous
      • Sainte Marie Bulletin Articles
      • “Let the Choir Have a Voice” (Essay)
      • Catechism of Gregorian Rhythm
      • Sacred Music Symposium 2023
      • The Eight Gregorian Modes
      • Gradual by Pothier’s Protégé
      • Father Enemond Massé Manuscripts
      • Seven (7) Considerations
    • René Goupil Gregorian Chant
    • Saint Jean de Lalande Library
    • Noël Chabanel Psalms
    • Nova Organi Harmonia (2,279 pages)
    • Roman Missal, 3rd Edition
    • Lalemant Polyphonic
    • Feasts Website
  • Donate
  • Cart
Views from the Choir Loft

Search Results for: simple english propers

Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Liturgical Translations

Jeff Ostrowski · May 1, 2014

This is no hybrid: it’s an elegant, accurate, modern, unified English translation of the Graduale!

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Graduale Romanum Roman Gradual Propers Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Catholic Youth Choir Releases CD, Prepares For Tour

Guest Author · January 15, 2014

The Blackstone Valley Catholic Youth Choir, currently preparing for a mid-Atlantic tour, has released a new CD, “Clothed With the Sun.”

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Catholic Youth Choirs Last Updated: January 1, 2020

It’s No Fluke

Richard J. Clark · September 13, 2013

One day after mass, a woman told me how wonderful it is to sing the scriptures while receiving communion. I doubt she knows at all what the propers of the mass are. She demonstrated that it is far easier to connect the music of the propers to the mass itself than potentially a hymn or song.

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

How Does One Use The Ordo Cantus Missæ?

Jeff Ostrowski · July 29, 2013

The second half of an article about the most important book you’ve never seen.

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Ordo Cantus Missae Last Updated: October 12, 2022

An Ordinary-Form Missa Cantata (almost)

Aristotle A. Esguerra · March 4, 2013

Moving towards actually enacting what the Church asks in regard to the singing of the words of the Mass given the Year of Faith theme for our diocese. An example of how this can be pulled off with already-existing resources and a few dedicated individuals.

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

“Spinning The Wheel” Each Week For Hymns

Jeff Ostrowski · February 25, 2013

Each and every week, thousands of Catholics play “Spin the Wheel for Hymns” instead of using the sacred and ancient texts prescribed by the Church. What does this have to do with a rich man born without legs and arms?

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

The UBI CARITAS chant for Holy Thursday

Jeff Ostrowski · April 5, 2012

Download five (5) different free versions of the “Ubi Caritas”

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Hymns: Everything You Ever Wanted To Know (2 of 2)

Jeff Ostrowski · March 15, 2012

PART 2: How do hymns fit into the Catholic Mass ?

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Hymns Replacing Propers Last Updated: January 1, 2020

Now That You’re Shunning Bad Hymns … Stop Announcing Them!

Daniel Marshall · January 8, 2026

“When we announce hymn numbers, we’re not facilitating participation—we’re disrupting it.” —Daniel Marshall

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: January 9, 2026

“Kaitrin Drost Strikes Again!” • Plus a Few Random Thoughts and Tirades by Jeff Ostrowski

Jeff Ostrowski · December 27, 2025

Imagine walking up into a choir loft and sounding like these young ladies without rehearsal.

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Tagged With: Alius Cantus Congruus, Father Adalbert Franquesa Garrós, Maria Walks Amid The Thorn Helen Drost, Mass Propers Proprium Missae, Missale Vetustum, Professor Laszlo Dobszay, Propria Missae for the Ordinary Form, THE ADALBERT PROPERS Last Updated: December 31, 2025

Advent • “Introducing Ancient Sacred Works”

Rebecca De La Torre · November 11, 2024

“In less than a year, I was able to transition their Spanish Mass from completely contemporary to completely sacred. No parishioners were lost and the Mass attendance grew slightly.” —Rebecca De La Torre

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Tagged With: El Rey Vendrá, The O Antiphons, Veni Veni Emmanuel Last Updated: November 11, 2024

Entrance Antiphons • “Transitioning from a Contemporary to Sacred Music Program”

Rebecca De La Torre · October 22, 2024

“These are simple propers, but not to the point of being monotone.” —Rebecca De La Torre

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Last Updated: October 23, 2024

PDF Download • “The Saint John’s Gradual”

Richard J. Clark · September 13, 2024

Free download of Saint John’s Gradual with Ecclesiastical Approbation from his Eminence Cardinal Seán O’Malley, O. F. M., Cap., Archbishop of Boston

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles, PDF Download Last Updated: September 13, 2024

“Introducing Chant in Your Parish” • With Kevin Allen

William J. Fritz · August 23, 2024

“If Bach wanted to learn from the master, he had to go a long way to do it, so he made the sacrifice to do it.” —Kevin Allen

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Last Updated: August 27, 2024

Mueller’s Artistic Credo • “Same But Different”

Christopher Mueller · January 4, 2024

“Variety within a single Mass is important for engaging the listening ears (and singing voices) of the congregation.” —Chris Mueller

To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.

Filed Under: Articles Tagged With: Justine Bayard Ward Method of Singing Last Updated: January 5, 2024

  • « Go to Previous Page
  • Page 1
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 3
  • Page 4
  • Page 5
  • Page 6
  • Page 7
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 10
  • Go to Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

Corpus Christi Watershed

President’s Corner

    Calling Dr. Weaver!

    A remarkable exposition of the “mora vocis” (published in 1953 in the Netherlands) which doesn’t shy away from a certain item!

    To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    SLANE • “Simplified” Keyboard Arr.

    Do you know ‘SLANE’ the hymn tune?

    To access this post, you must purchase Monthly Subscription or Yearly Subscription.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    Insane Baroque-Era Dissonance!
    The sumptuous melody called “JESU LEIDEN PEIN UND TOD” appears no fewer than three times in the Brébeuf Catholic Hymnal and is harmonized with standard Common Practice Era SATB voice leading and harmonies (which is only natural). However, one who takes the time to examine what Sebastian Bach did with that tune will encounter an incredibly dissonant sound. As far as I’m concerned, there is no more dissonant sound—in the entire Baroque era—than what I highlighted in yellow on that excerpt. Please let me know if you disagree.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Quick Thoughts

    ‘Ould’ But Not Good
    Dom Samuel Gregory Ould (note the spelling) was a Benedictine monk at FORT AUGUSTUS ABBEY in Scotland. As musician, organist, and composer, Dom Ould was highly regarded. Moreover, he was considered an authority on Gregorian Chant. But not everything found in an old book—or, in this case, an “Ould” book—is necessarily praiseworthy. Consider this page from Dom Ould’s hymnal. Do you see the rhymes? They offend severely by ABR (“Abuse By Reuse”) and are utterly predictable. In my recent article—Two Ways to Defile a Hymn—I addressed this topic.
    —Jeff Ostrowski
    “Reader Feedback” • 22 June 2026
    A reader wrote to us from Virginia: “I really appreciate the 23 harmonizations that you posted on CORPUS CHRISTI WATERSHED for the Daily, Daily, Sing to Mary hymn. I hope to find willing voices in our small Schola Cantorum to try the three-voice version. Carry on, sir! You’re doing the Lord’s work.” While we don’t know this gentleman personally, we note that he earned a Ph.D. (which demonstrates that our blog has something for everybody). 😊
    —Corpus Christi Watershed
    Time and Again We Are Asked…
    John Baptist Singenberger (d. 1924) was a central figure of Catholic Church music. In this utterly fascinating excerpt (Single-Page PDF), Singenberger writes: Time and again we are asked: “Is the Gregorian chant to be accompanied by the organ?” As a young student in Saint Gall, Singenberger befriended SEBASTIAN GEBHARD MESSMER, the future Archbishop of Milwaukee (Wisconsin). The two graduated together in 1861. The school they attended (Saint George’s Seminary) was a “seminary”—but in the older European sense. In other words, it provided a classical education without necessarily leading to ordination. Singenberger remained a layman his whole life, but Messmer was eventually made archbishop—by Pope Saint Pius X—of the very archdiocese in Wisconsin where Singenberger would spend his American career, giving him a powerful ecclesiastical ally.
    —Jeff Ostrowski

Random Quote

If then Dom Pothier has sometimes adapted authentic melodies found elsewhere in the manuscripts to texts of the Mass it is not, as Mr. X. maintains, because he has “composed them from scratch and declared them as traditional.”

— Most Rev’d Henri Laurent Janssens (25 November 1905)

Recent Posts

  • PDF Download • “Roman Catholic Music in England from 1850–1962” — Lengthy Dissertation (402 pages)
  • Why I Never Write Articles for Corpus Christi Watershed Anymore
  • Calling Dr. Weaver!
  • “A Catholic Choir Director’s Decalogue” • Jeff’s Personal Odyssey (10 Points)
  • SLANE • “Simplified” Keyboard Arr.

Subscribe

Subscribe

* indicates required

Footer

CONTACT • Corpus Christi Watershed

1 (747) 218-8005
chabanel.psalms@gmail.com
Corpus Christi Watershed
8118 Etienne Dr
Corpus Christi, TX 78414

Copyright © 2026 Corpus Christi Watershed · Isaac Jogues on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Corpus Christi Watershed is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization recognized by the state of Texas on 19 October 2006. Our statement of purpose notes that we “employ the creative media in service of theology, the Church, and Christian culture for the enrichment and enjoyment of the public.”