If only it would catch on at my church! From The independent:
"....change is inevitable for the monks at Austria's Holy Cross monastery, who for more than 800 years have lived lives devoted to prayer. They have been given a recording contract after blowing away executives at Universal Music with singing that numbers Pope Benedict XVI among its fans."
"....Universal was persuaded that a Gregorian chants album would be a winner by the runaway success of the computer game Halo, which uses the singing – a plainchant sung without musical accompaniment by male choirs – as a soundtrack."
"....Gregorian chant –named after Pope Gregory I – has hit the charts before. In the 1990s, the band Enigma released several successful CDs featuring it. However, plainchant has recently resurfaced as the soundtrack to Xbox games which have sold more than 16 million copies."
"Dickon Stainer, boss of Universal Classics and Jazz, said: 'Young people have an awareness of Gregorian chant, even though it's not something you come across in everyday life. It made us think that there was something in it.' "
Yes, indeedy, there is something in it. Again, if only the Boston archdiocese and local Catholic churches appreciated chant half as much as Xbox execs.
Bring it back to churches!
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