Chant: The Origins, Form, Practice, and Healing Power of Gregorian Chant

By Katharine Le Mée

Book Overview

Since the spring of 1994 there have been sales of almost two million copies of the Angel recording of Chant, sung by the Benedictine monks of Santo Domingo de Silos in Spain. People are drawn irresistibly to its peaceful sound, but very few of them know anything about the tradition or meaning of Gregorian Chant or understand the language in which it is sung. In this companion book, which includes the full text of the Chant CD with translations from the Latin, Katharine Le Mee traces the historical and liturgical sources of the chant and provides answers to everyone's questions about what Gregorian Chant is, how it is written and sung, the latest research on its therapeutic qualities, and the extraordinary effect its simple, pure, unaccompanied tones can have on the body, mind, and heart. At a time when we are all feeling so overworked and under pressure, the calm, measured, almost transcendent sound of the monks singing these ancient melodies seems to put us in touch with our true selves. It is as though, in listening to their song, we share in the monks' aspirations, devotion, and experience. The sudden popularity of this music today -- after 1,300 years -- is indicative of the deep spiritual hunger manifesting everywhere. Here is a book that explains how and in what ways Gregorian Chant can begin to nourish us and transform our lives.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0517700379
• ISBN13: 9780517700372
• Release Date: November 1994
• Publisher: Crown Publishing Group, The
• Length: 169 Pages
• Weight: 0.53 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 6.2"

Customer Reviews

Music and sound as a form of subtle nourishment.

CHANT : The Origins, Form, Practice, and Healing Power of Gregorian Chant. By Katharine Le Mee. 169 pp. New York : Bell Tower, 1994. ISBN 0-517-70037-9 (hbk.)In 1994 a recording of Gregorian Chant entitled 'Chant,' sung by the Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo de Silos in Spain, ran up sales of over two million copies. People were drawn by its peaceful sound, though very few know anything about its tradition or meaning. The present book is designed as a companion book. It includes the Latin and English texts of the 'Chant' recording and provides answers to questions about what Gregorian chant is, how it is written and sung, the latest research on its therapeutic qualities, and the powerful effect it can have on the body, mind, and feelings.The book's eight Chapters cover the following topics : 1. Welcome to Chant; 2. Music and the Medieval World View; 3. A History of Early Western Chant; 4. The Way of Devotion; 5. The Composition and Notation of Chant; 6. The Way Chant is Sung; 7. Healing Through Chant; 8. The Life of Chant. The book is rounded out with a Discography, and the Text and Translation of the 'Chant' CD. To read and enjoy this book it isn't necessary to have the recording, though it will help if one has heard at least a little Gregorian chanting.Katharine Le Mee is not only a scholar of Romance Linguistics, but also a singer and conductor who has immersed herself in the music of the Middle Ages for many years, and she has given us an extraordinary book. For me, two of its most interesting chapters were the sixth and seventh, chapters from which we learn some extremely important things about sound which aren't generally understood at all, though they should be. We live in a largely visually-based world. Think, for example, of computers, or of how all scientific and technological knowledge is conveyed in visual terms - formulae, books, charts, blueprints, schematics, etc. And one of the most important things to understand about sound is that it is a far more powerful energy and penetrates us far more deeply than the visual. This is why the right sort of music or sound can be a form of subtle nourishment :"The effect of chant is to balance mind, emotions, and body. Singing or simply actively listening to chant with directed attention, we feel whole and part of a greater whole. It is precisely this integrating tendency that constitutes healing" (p.140). But to fully understand this you'll just have to read Le Mee. Hers is a lucid, well-written, and exceptionally important book which should be read, not only by those interested in chant, but by anyone who would like to learn about this vitally important element in our life which few of us know anything about at all - the power of sound to affect our mind, spirit, and heart, and the dessication that results when we lose touch with right sound.