Description

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SINCE 1833, the research and study of Gregorian Chant by the Monks of the Abbey of St. Peter in Solesmes, France, has focused on making this sung form of prayer the finest possible offering for God, to whom it is addressed six times a day at the Abbey.

These recordings include the moving Gregorian chants and prayers for the night before Jesus' Passion, when he gave the "mandate" to love one another as he has loved us and includes Ubi caritas and Pange Lingua and the two Gregorian chant offices of Maundy Thursday--the Office of Tenebræ and the Ceremony of Foot-washing. Tenebrae of Good Friday includes all three nocturnes of the office of Matins and the antiphons and psalms of Lauds the Good Friday liturgy of the hours, sung in the dramatic style appropriate to the night before the Savior's Passion.

This set includes 3 CDs:

• Maundy Thursday
• Christ in Gethsemane
• Tenebrae of Good Friday

About the Author

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The Recorded Legacy of Solesmes

Since the refounding of the monastery 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 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.

Paraclete Press is proud to be the North American distributor of the recordings of the monks of Solesmes. These recordings have won numerous prestigious international awards, including the Grand Prix du Disque, Deutsche Schallplatten Prize, Diapason d’Or, and the Edison Prize.

 

Praise For…

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"Paraclete Press offers a superb list of outstanding Christian music which is magnificently performed by the monks of Solesmes. Each of these highly recommended exceptional recordings is flawlessly produced and showcases centuries of devotions, chants, celebrations, and the glorification of God." —Reviewer's Bookwatch

"This disc is a marvelous evocation of Holy Thursday's Tenebrae and foot-washing ceremonies, important for understanding the evolution of chant interpretation at the home base of chant restoration. Some of the antiphons have never been recorded before." —J. F. Weber, Fanfare

"This recording (Maundy Thursday)... claims high regard.... Here the justly famed choir of St. Peter's Abbey, Solesmes, directed with inspiration by Dom Jean Claire, offer Tenebrae and Lauds for Maundy Thursday and also the music for the Ceremony of Foot Washing. The music is utterly magnificent and the singing of this great choir is thrilling beyond words. Buy this disc if you expend your last pence; it's better to starve to this music than to live without it." —Classic CD

“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