Views from the Choir Loft

Jeff Ostrowski • Article Archive

A theorist, organist, and conductor, Jeff Ostrowski holds his B.M. in Music Theory from the University of Kansas (2004). He completed studies in Education and Musicology at the graduate level. Having worked as a church musician in Los Angeles for ten years, in 2024 he accepted a position as choirmaster for Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception in Michigan, where he resides with his wife and children. —Read full biography (with photographs).

Jeff Ostrowski · October 23, 2016

Musical Resources • 23rd Sunday after Pentecost

“Remit, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the sins of Thy people…”

Jeff Ostrowski · October 19, 2016

Watershed: Established Ten Years Ago Today!

What keeps us going is our wonderful readers, whose kindness and witness inspire us.

Jeff Ostrowski · October 18, 2016

Palestrina • Jaw-Dropping “Kyrie” based on a Hymn

Two generous young ladies, currently in high school, helped me record this gorgeous Kyrie.

Jeff Ostrowski · October 17, 2016

“The Organist At Sung Mass” —Fr. Adrian Fortescue

Thoughts on “the hidden struggles” of a choirmaster.

Jeff Ostrowski · October 14, 2016

Complete Palestrina Edition • Now Online!

His Mass settings alone require 2,349 pages!

Jeff Ostrowski · October 10, 2016

Choirmaster’s Life: “A Life of Sacrifice”

Due to human nature, I believe most of us won’t reach our potential—unless we’re forced to do so!

Jeff Ostrowski · October 7, 2016

Musical Resources • 21st Sunday after Pentecost

“All things are in Thy will, O Lord, and there is none that can resist Thy will…”

Jeff Ostrowski · October 7, 2016

I Got Caught!

I hardly ever watch internet videos, but this one I could not resist.

Jeff Ostrowski · October 4, 2016

What Should A Church Look Like?

I have no idea which cathedral this is, but architects should take note!

Jeff Ostrowski · October 3, 2016

Cardinal Sarah’s Missing Paragraph…

This article includes live recordings from a conference (“Society for Catholic Liturgy”) in Los Angeles.

Jeff Ostrowski · September 29, 2016

Why Did Vatican II Happen?

These might not constitute the most perfect way to assist at Mass, but they’re very nice (German) hymn tunes!

Jeff Ostrowski · September 28, 2016

Twenty Minutes That Changed My Life Forever

I might be able to memorize that Chopin etude, but there’s no way I could memorize that 5-voice Bach fugue today.

Jeff Ostrowski · September 27, 2016

Where do you obtain your Psalms?

Download these Breviary files and keep them as our little secret!

Jeff Ostrowski · September 23, 2016

Propers for the Jesuit Martyrs of North America

“I shall remain here while there is a soul to save. My life is of no account if I can help you.” —Fr. Antoine Daniel

Jeff Ostrowski · September 22, 2016

SATB • “Come Holy Ghost, Who Ever One” — John Henry Cardinal Newman

This tune will get stuck in your head, and the words by Cardinal Newman are splendid.

“Entrance Chant” • Immaculate Conception

Download the ENTRANCE ANTIPHON in English for the Immaculate Conception (9 December 2024). It’s in the third mode—which some consider the most beautiful of all—and mimics the authentic version in a laudable way. Corresponding to the vocalist score is this free organ accompaniment. If you’re someone who enjoys rehearsal videos, I attempted to sing it while simultaneously accompanying my voice on the pipe organ.

—Jeff Ostrowski

How Sharp Are Your Eyes?

Just around the corner is the feast of the Immaculate Conception. The GREGORIAN MISSAL (Solesmes Abbey, 1990) is an utterly gorgeous book—there’s no question about that. But several typos did creep in. Can you spot the major typo for the ENTRANCE CHANT on the feast of the Immaculate Conception? How sharp are your eyes? If you succeed, send me an email letting me know.

—Jeff Ostrowski

“Music List” • (Christ the King Sunday)

This coming Sunday—24 November 2024—is Christ the King Sunday (a.k.a. “Final Sunday in Ordinary Time”). Some have expressed interest in perusing my “ORDER OF MUSIC.” If such a thing interests you, feel free to download it as a PDF file. You’ll notice we’re learning Moreau’s “Congregational Polyphonic Enhancement” for the OUR FATHER. And the the Mode 3 ENTRANCE CHANT is utterly sublime.

—Jeff Ostrowski

The Breviary in the Life of the Laity

Recently I have been enjoying looking through the inaugural (1927) edition of a 20th-century liturgical magazine called Orate Fratres. The July 1927 issue included an excellent article by a Chicago laywoman named Ellen Gates Starr entitled “The Delights of the Breviary: From the Point of View of a Lay Woman.” As we in the 21st century have recently undergone a (blessed!) re-translation of the missal into English, and as we await with joyful hope (please God, before Jesus comes back!) a similar re-translation of the breviary, the opening of her article reminded me of that old saying, “the more things change, the more they stay the same.” Nearly a hundred years ago, she penned words that could just as easily have been written today: “It is indeed a privilege to be allowed any participation, however slight, in the liturgical movement in the Church – the movement to bring back the classics of devotion, the Missal and the Breviary, into general use by the laity. The wonder is that they should ever have fallen into disuse. Nothing can take the place of these great universal prayers of the Church, the prayers of the Mass and the divine Office. One has only to know them to find them indispensable. And alas, how few of the laity know them!” I know that I have been tremendously nourished by regular praying of the breviary as of late, and my wish is that you and I, dear reader, may continue to nourish our interior lives with the official prayer of the Church, which present to us (in the Mass) and extend (in the Office) the fullness of Christ’s greatest gift to us – the gift of Himself – in the Most Holy Eucharist.

—Daniel Tucker

Principles vs Preferences

I ran into this idea recently: principles vs. preferences in planning out a curriculum or music lineup. In this idea, it is imperative to not misconstrue personal preferences into principles—that the music (or subject matter) is great because: “I have good taste, and I like it.” De gustibus… Education, study and docility to the Magisterium of the Church on matters of liturgical music must be present in those who make the music at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the Hours. Who knows? Maybe you might start to prefer the music that is fitting according to the principles Catholic Sacred Music?

—William J. Fritz

Liquescent Notes in the Official Edition

The official edition—the EDITIO VATICANA itself—is somewhat inconsistent when it comes to liquescent notes. If you wish to see a perfect “apples-to-apples” comparison, click here. Such “inconsistency” was not owing to ignorance on the part of Abbat Pothier: the manuscripts themselves are inconsistent when it comes to liquescent notes.

—Jeff Ostrowski