The biggest selling album in the history of Christian music has quite staggeringly turned out to be a double CD of Gregorian Chant. John Irvine carries out a comprehensive survey of the ancient musical and spiritual tradition.



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Available on the Belart label is the imaginatively entitled 'Gregorian Chants' (disc B3), 73 minutes focusing on Palm Sunday and Easter Sunday. Despite being recorded in the early 1970s, the recording has a remarkably bright tone. The performance is very, very good, with an approach nicely halfway between the 'upfront' approach of Pro Cantione Antiqua and the 'laid back' Saint Maurice monks. Unfortunately the recording location lets the performers down abysmally. The echo sounds reminiscent of water gurgling down a drain, which is a shame because otherwise this would have been a very attractive disc. Nevertheless, worth hearing, and probably useful for Easter meditations. Texts are not provided, however.

The Benedictine Monks of Quarr Abbey on the Isle Of Wight chant their way through Sunday vespers and compline on the equally imaginatively entitled 'Gregorian Chant' (disc B4) on Boots the Chemists own in-house label. Despite the clarity of the recording and the pedigree of the religious house - Quarr is a sister church of Solesmes Abbey, where chant was purified in the 19th century - ultimately this album fails to please because of a terrible performance. The voices are weedy, sanctimonious and expressionless, the organ annoying and intrusive, the selections long and drawn out and the monks too closely miked with little or no ambience of the abbey to fill out the voices. While I agree that a good attempt has been made to convey a genuine act of worship (which is generally lacking from most discs, and why this disc has been included in this article), ultimately this disc is best avoided. In a world of Gregorian Chant discs divided up into the Good, the Bad and the Ugly, this disc definitely and sadly falls into the latter category.

Regional Variations
Despite the general uniformity of worship enforced by the 12th century, some regional variations persisted and indeed thrived. The Salisbury or Sarum rite was an elaborate and decorative version of the general Roman rite (so called Gregorian Chant). Sarum Chant became the model for countless non-monastic cathedral and parish churches all over the British Isles. On 'Like The Sun In His Orb' (disc F2) Schola Gregoriana Of Cambridge vividly bring the Sarum rite to life. Male and female voices are used together, the females playing the part of boys, who would have sung both antiphonally and in octaves with the men.

The disc is certainly more varied and interesting than your average chant album. In particular the Easter 'Exultet' clocking in at 18 minutes is a glorious celebration of the resurrection of Christ. Also, slightly unusually, there is a definite 'swing', a stronger rhythm to the chants than is normally observed, a practice which enhances this performance rather than detracting from it. It's not an overwhelming rhythm - let's leave that to Enigma - but it's there nevertheless! A very attractive disc of far more than just academic interest.

The Sarum rite was particularly popular in Scotland. 'Columba, Most Holy Of Saints' (disc F3) is a reconstruction of music for the Feast Of St Columba as it was celebrated in the Abbey of Inchcolm, which was dedicated to the great saint. The music generally follows Roman and Sarum Chant, but there are also a few items unique to this celebration which may date from the time of the Celtic church. Some of the prayers are specific to the Abbey - particularly prayers against attack by thieving English pirates! The style of performance on this disc is unusual: the blending of four types of voices (SATB) and the use of bells and a Clarsach (a plucked instrument similar to a harp) may come as something as a shock. This is a unique performance of a unique body of music which no serious collector of vocal music should be without. Remarkably different from any other disc of chant you are likely to hear.

The Medieval Superstars
The 12th and 13th centuries saw the beginnings of modern music in several respects, particularly in the emergence of named composers who were written about and their work documented and preserved. These early writers were writing within the accepted style of church worship, adding to rather than detracting from or challenging the supremacy of Gregorian Chant.

A remarkable woman who led a community of nuns, wrote down ecstatic visions of Christ, wrote books of history, botany and medicine, wrote poetry and the world's first 'morality play', acted as an advisor to popes and kings, and still found time to write words and music for her community to sing, the Abbess Hildegard of Bingen described herself as 'A Feather On The Breath Of God' (disc F4). 73 of her songs have survived. This brief selection by the Gothic Voices has been a constant best seller since its release in 1981. Not only is it a remarkable example of medieval music, it is remarkable and outstanding music in its own right, the work of an extremely gifted individual. This is not the only disc of Hildegard's music available, but it is far and away the best. You will be moved by this full blooded and heartfelt performance.

After a rather eventful life, philosopher and composer Pete Abelard ended his days as a monk on one side of France writing music for a community run by his ex-wife on the other side of France. Virtually all of Abelard's music was until recently thought lost. Now his music is available to performers again. Now Schola Gregoriana Of Cambridge bring to life not only Abelard's religious music, but also three anonymous pieces of music from the same period which help set Abelard's music in contrast. In particular the liturgical drama 'Sponus' and 'Samson Dux Fortissime' illustrate the changes which were taking place in music at this time. Abelard's music is quite remarkable, abounding in both humanity as well as spirituality, a remarkable testament both to his faith in God and to his continuing love for Abbess Heloise, to whom the songs were intended. 'Suscipe Me, Domine' is an outstanding gem of a piece, a prayer of dedication for monks and nuns, an urgent plea of devotion and a cry for mercy. A remarkable 74 minutes of plainchant (disc F1).

Last, But Not Least
Gregorian Chant in the pop charts and on the dance floors: Enigma's brilliant 'MCMXC.AD' (disc F5) sampled Gregorian Chant for several of its tracks, notably the hit singles "Sadeness" and "Mea Culpa". I'd recommend the 'extended' version of the album with extra remixes stretching the disc out to one hour of music. Spiritual? Definitely not! Sensual? Absolutely! New Age? Possibly. Still, it is some of the most imaginative dance pop around and it introduced a whole new generation to Gregorian Chant, so it can't be all bad! CR

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.