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

Rating:
Summary: Music and sound as a form of subtle nourishment.
Review: 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.

Rating:
Summary: Music and sound as a form of subtle nourishment.
Review: 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.