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First Published in February, 2017 Last updated: March 30, 2024  Some resources for singing the St. Meinrad Psalm Tones with the Liturgy of the Hours I love to sing the Psalms in the Liturgy of the Hours. I have read that Gregorian Chant Psalm tones are perfectly matched for the Psalms in Latin, but can be a little awkward for English Psalms. I haven't really noticed that, except for the fact that you must repeat the Gregorian Psalm tones more often. This is because the Gregorian Psalm tones are arranged for only two lines of text at a time while the Liturgy of the Hours arrange the Psalms in groupings of up to six lines (and sometimes even more). The Saint Meinrad Psalm Tones can take over six lines of text at a time, so they are a perfect match for the Psalms in the Liturgy of the Hours. I've made a few files to help me sing the Psalms to these Psalm tones, and I thought they might be of use to others, so I've put up links on this page along with a few links to other resources from The Saint Meinrad Archabbey. I have not asked for permission to make my own resources publicly available, so if the people who hold the rights to these Psalm tones complain or ask me to remove these, I certainly will. There was a PDF of the St. Meinrad Psalm tones on the web, and it was excellent, but that has apparently vanished. Since I had a copy, I reconstructed the same tones in two colors. Below is an SVG file which allows you to pinch out for a clear zoom in. 
As you can see, this uses traditional neumes (square notes). Square notes are actually easier to read than round notes; there are only four lines on the staff, and no confusing key signatures. In most of the examples above will see a clef symbol which represents DO (from the DO RE MI scale). In tone number 2 you will see a clef symbol for FA. For more information on square notes see my article How to chant the Liturgy of the Hours with Gregorian Chant and a digital breviary. Anyway, here the same Psalm tones in modern (round) notation. They are also in basic, easier keys (see the section on guitar chords below for an explanation). 
MP3 files of the tones played on a church organ An organ accompaniment music score PDF was for a time available on the web until it vanished, but it came in various keys with all those confusing sharps and flats (confusing to me, anyway).
I downloaded it while it was available and converted it into sound files so I could listen to the Psalm tones with the chords. Perhaps the most confusing part (at least for me) of singing these Psalm tones is switching back and forth between stanzas containing different numbers of lines. A two line stanza takes two measures from the Psalm tone, a three line stanza takes three measures, etc. Normally you are supposed to start with the beginning measure, sing through the following measures in order, and then skip to the final measure to wrap up the stanza. But there are several exceptions to the rule. So I made examples of each mode as it appears in all the various groupings, from two to six measures. These are done with a church organ sound, which is very dramatic and helps to set these tones firmly in your memory. I keep these files on my mp3 player and listen to them all the time, and have discovered that whenever I sing the Psalms now, the musical accompanimant is right there in my head, making it an even richer experience! ...and a harp Here is a second set of mp3 files which is done with a harp sound for a more gentle, peaceful feeling; very appropriate with the Psalms. These files have all six measures except for Mode 8 which actually has a different ending for 2-4 line stanzas and 5-6 line stanzas.
Combining the music with the text
Their website is still there, but that podcast has apparently vanished. Fortunately, the files have been preserved at the Wayback Machine Internet Archive so I was able to extract mp3 files so you can get a better picture of how to sing the Psalms with these Psalm tones. They sing from a English translation of the Psalms and canticles that is probably different from what is in your breviary. By the way, I have not received permission to post these files here, so if the owners have any objections I will immediately apologize and remove these. There are also excellent recordings on YouTube sung acappella by Fr. Kevin Vogel. These also display the tones in square note neumes, so you can both see and hear the Psalm Tones. Handy card
This PDF is designed to be folded in half to make a two-sided card. I've included lots of notes in the margins for your reference, mainly because all that white space seemed like such a waste. After you print and trim the card, you can throw the marginal notes away. You can take all the cards on this page to the next level by using a round corner punch and also laminating the cards. Guitar chords!
Seriously, I searched the web high and low for guitar chords, and could find nothing. So I listened to the mp3 files listed above, and came up with chords that approximate what I heard, but in the two "easy guitar keys" of C or Am depending on whether or not the tone was major or minor. These are also in modern notation since they seem to look better with guitar chords. You can use a capo to adjust the key to your singing range. I also added indications so you can add a capo and play along with the recordings in the original key. Playing the guitar along with the harp recordings is particularly gratifying. These are basic guitar chords without the extra "color" notes which would require addditional fingers of extraordinary length -- or perhaps a higher level of guitar playing ability which I do not possess. As you play along, you might be able to add a few more notes that I had omitted. These chords may also be of use in communities where people don't mind a basic guitar accompaniment. Today a guitar is as close as most people will ever get to playing a harp. The card will fit in a small breviary or psalter, but most guitar players need something a little larger when they are playing. So here is a larger version without the marginal notes.
I've also made a card has a chart which arbitrarily assigns each Psalm to one of the eight modes in the St. Meinrad Psalm tones based on the mood of the text. There is no need for anyone to follow my choices, but it can save time and can be useful in group settings. I had tried different combinations of Psalms and Psalm tones, and often came to places where the tone just didn't fit the mood in certain parts of a Psalm. So I came up with my own Psalm tone assignments which evolved as I chanted all the Psalms from cover to cover several times. Over the years I've edited this chart numerous times to make sure that no Psalm tone is used twice during any given Hour in the four-week Psalter, and that includes the tones for the Benedictus, Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis which were the most likely to clash with other tones because the same tones are used every day. However, the invitatory Psalm is moveable and may be sung at the beginning of different Hours. So Psalm tone 7 which goes with the invitatory Psalm might also appear with another Psalm during one of these Hours. Otherwise, Psalm tone 7 would have to be restricted to the invitatory Psalm alone to avoid all clashes. On special days where different Psalm combinations might be used, there could also be duplicating of Psalm tones. I recall one particular Evening Prayer on a special day where all the Psalms and canticles used the same Psalm tone, but that is rare. Like the two cards above, this PDF is designed to be folded in half to make a thicker card, mainly because it's easier to handle as a card rather than a thin sheet of paper.
After you print and trim the card, you can throw the marginal notes away. If you'd like to have the Saint Meinrad Psalm tones in modern notation on the back of the card, you can get that PDF here. Note: There are Roman numerals in the margins to the left of Psalm 119 for those who need them. 3 X 5 index cards When I'm singing the Psalms, my eyes go back and forth between the text and the music, so I try to keep a finger on the Psalm tone so I won't lose my place. But I'm easily distracted, and I often lose my place anyway. It's not uncommon for me to resume singing the same Psalm from an entirely different Psalm tone! 
So I printed each Psalm tone on its own separate index card so I won't get lost, and it seems to work. Maybe you are the same way, and these may help you as well. You also can punch a hole in the corner or to the side and put these cards on a string or ribbon so you can flip through them without dropping any. And it looks like a bookmark which you can tuck in your Psalter or Bible. There are four cards per PDF sheet. As with the other cards listed above, I've included notes in the margins for your reference. After you print and trim the cards, you can throw the marginal notes away. To make these index cards easier to handle, and more card-like, I recommend gluing the printed paper to a second sheet sheet of paper and then cutting them out together. A glue stick works best because it won't make the paper so wet and wrinkly. If you have a box cutter knife and metal ruler (with cutting mat to protect your table) these will make the job easier and much neater. If you find yourself involved in craft projects of this sort often, I would also recommend getting a round corner punch because they are really cool and also practical as they help prevent dog-eared corners. Doing it all digitally For those who prefer to pray on a tablet and don't want to mess with printing up cards, I have written an article called How to chant the Liturgy of the Hours with the Saint Meinrad Psalm Tones and a digital breviary. In that article I include single page PDFs of some of the charts mentioned above which have been sized to fit a split screen on a tablet:
If you would like to Gregorian chant on a tablet, I've written a separate article called How to chant the Liturgy of the Hours with Gregorian Chant and a digital breviary.
Supplement: Adding even more chant and music from other sources The Responsory and Intercessions After chanting the Psalms, you may want to chant some parts that follow. Here is a simple Psalm tone that I use for the Responsory and the Intercessions as well as the opening lines "Lord open my lips..." and "God come to my assistance...". This is not a Saint Meinrad Psalm Tone but a tone in the Gregorian chant tradition. It has been used for centuries for the smaller phrases of the Office and the Mass such as "The Lord be with you, and with your spirit." Here is the Psalm tone in its traditional music notation with square notes: 
If you are unfamiliar with this type of square notation, it is very simple. The character that resembles an elongated "C" indicates where "DO" on the "DO-RE-MI" scale would be. And the dotted notes indicate the note should be held a little longer than the other notes. For more information on this type of music notation see my article How to chant the Liturgy of the Hours with Gregorian Chant and a digital breviary. The tone is divided into two parts, corresponding to the two parts of the Responsory and the Intercessions. (As for the italicized response in the intercessions, I just say that part because it is not covered by the tone.) There are no navigation symbols in the Responsory and Intercessions text except for a dash, so I inserted a red dash at the proper spot in the notation above the dividing line. Chant or recite the non-Psalms? At this point I ought to say something which many readers already know. While the Psalms were written as songs to be sung, many other parts of the Liturgy of the Hours are a bit awkward to sing, including some canticles, because they were not originally written as songs. This especially goes for the New Testament canticles in Evening Prayer which were written to communicate crucial truths, but not necessarily intended to be sung (and some are even difficult to sing). I sometimes opt to recite some of the non-Psalms rather than sing them because the meaning comes through more clearly if I don't break up the sentences midway to force them into a tune. What about the hymn? It might seem odd to chant the Psalms, but merely say the hymn because you don't know the tune. If you are praying the Liturgy of the Hours with either iBreviary or Universalis then you are in luck because on most days they have a hymn that is written in Long Meter. In iBreviary if you scroll to the end of a hymn you will see the tune's name followed by the letters LM or the numbers 8 8 8 8. An example of Long Meter is the Doxology or Old 100th (Praise God from whom all blessings flow...). I have two personal favorite Long Meter tunes which work very well with iBreviary and Universalis. One is Tallis' Canon and the other is Winchester New. Both of these are simple, dignified, and easy to remember. In case you don't know them, I have made simple mp3 piano demos of both: Lately I have been using a new Long Meter hymn which I had composed in the Pentatonic scale for the 7 string lyre. It's such a simple tune that I wouldn't be surprised if someone else has already come up with it. If you know of an earlier version of this, please let me know. But for now, since I need to give it a name, I've just attached my own name. Sometimes a hymn will appear in Common Meter which is followed by the letters CM or the numbers 8 6 8 6. Common Meter is perhaps more common than you realize. Here are some familiar tunes in Common Meter:
One of my favorite Common Meter tunes is St. Flavian which is very similar to Tallis' Canon. Here is a piano demo: St. Flavian An exellent web site which has samples many other tunes written in various meters is Seedbed Index of Meters & Tunes Final note The added musical dimension supplied by Psalm tones and other resources is definitely gratifying, and also keeps one on track. May God bless you as you endeavor to put a little more music into your prayer life.
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