Description

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Gregorian chants to enrich the experience of Holy Week

This recording will assist in personal or group praying of the liturgy of the hours in Gregorian chant for Good Friday. It includes all three nocturnes of the office of Matins and the antiphons and psalms of Lauds the Good Friday liturgy of the hours.

     First Nocturne
     Track 1-Antiphon     Astiterunt and Psalm 2
     Track 2-Antiphon     Diviserunt and Psalm 21
     Track 3-Antiphon     Insurrexerunt and Psalm 26
     Track 4-Responsory     Omnes amici
     Track 5-Responsory     Velum temple
     Track 6-Responsory     Vinea mea
    
 Second Nocturne
     Track 7-Antiphon     Vim faciebant and Psalm 37
     Track 8-Antiphon     Confundator and Psalm 39
     Track 9-Antiphon     Alieni and Psalm 53
     Track 10-Responsory     Tamquam
     Track 11-Responsory     Tenebrae
     Track 12-Responsory     Animam meam
     Third Nocturne
     Track 13-Antiphon     Ab insurgentibus and Psalm 58
     Track 14-Antiphon     Longe fecisti and Psalm 87
     Track 15-Antiphon     Captabunt and Psalm 93
     Track 16-Responsory     Tradiderunt
     Track 17-Responsory     Jesum tradidit
     Track 18-Responsory     Caligaverunt
     
Lauds
     Track 19-Antiphon     Proprio Filio and Psalm 50
     Track 20-Antiphon     Anxiatus est and Psalm 142
     Track 21-Antiphon     Ait latro and Psalm 84
     Track 22-Antiphon     Dum conturbata and canticle
     Track 23-Antiphon     Memento mei and Psalm 147
     Track 24-Antiphon     Posuerunt and Benedictus
     Track 25-Responsory     Christus factus est
     Track 26-Hymn     Pange lingua
     Track 27-Responsory     Insurrexerunt
     Track 28-Responsory     Vadis propitiator
     Track 29-Hymn     Vexilla regis     
 

About the Author

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Since the re-founding of the Abbey of St. Peter of Solesmes in 1833 under Dom Prosper Gueranger, this Benedictine monastery on the River Sarthe in western France has set the world standard both for the performance of Gregorian chant and the authenticity of the music itself. Commissioned by Pope Pius X to research the role of chant in liturgy and to edit books on chant that reflect this research, Solesmes enjoys an enviable reputation. Its work in liturgical reform and in the current revival of Gregorian chant has been likened to that of the great abbey of Cluny in the Middle Ages. These recordings incorporate new understandings of ancient manuscripts and represent a distillation of nearly 200 years of scholarship in the chant: musical paleography, semiology, and modality. The groundbreaking work by the monks of Solesmes has contributed to today’s resurgence of interest in Gregorian chant as the foundation of Western music.

Praise For…

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"The latest edition of haunting, crystalline chant by the monks of the Abbey of Solesmes, at the forefront of the Gregorian revival from 1833 to the present. Flawless presentations of the three Nocturnes and Lauds of Good Friday, unrivalled in authenticity. An insert includes a brief history of Solesmes and Tenebrae, and a translation and brief commentary for each of the chants. A feast for the Gregorian aficionado."
 —Theological Book Service

“The most famous and ‘authentic’ recordings of Gregorian chant for generations have been those made by the Solesmes monks.”   —The Boston Globe

“The music is utterly magnificent and the singing of this great choir is thrilling beyond words…it’s better to starve to this music than to live without it.”  —Classic CD

“Supremely ethereal.”   —USA Today

“Solesmes sets the standard for Gregorian chant performance.”  —American Record Guide
 


"The success of Gregorian chant in the past century, and the centered richness of prayer it brings to all of us, is almost singularly due to the herculean efforts of the Benedictine Monks of Solesmes, France." 

"Communicates a mood of mystery, timelessness, peace, beauty, and contemplation." 

"The Monks of Solesmes ... use the most authentic manuscripts and ancient documents to recover the original melodies." 

"The monks' chanting is living, strong, unvarnished." 

"The chant is organic and text-based ... the singing is full and well-supported." 

"The recordings present entire liturgies, mostly sung live (creating) ... a sense of unbroken, focused prayer." 

"There's something incredible fresh and new ... which is well worth your attention." 

—New Liturgical Movement 

"Beauty and immense spiritual power when sung by the Monastic Choir of St. Peter's Abbey, Solesmes, France" 

"The music is exceptionally inviting, engaging listeners' ears with beauty and elevating their thoughts no matter what their spiritual or religious beliefs and doctrines may be." 

"The beauties of Gregorian chant...encourage inward looking, contemplation, thoughtfulness, a kind of separation from mundane affairs ... Gregorian chant resonates." 

"The sensitive, careful, beautifully measured performances here can be used as an entry point to an earlier time." 

—TransCentury Communications