MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2024
60,000 reviews
... and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             

CD REVIEW



Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger

Traditions Monastiques

 

Gregorian Chant for Pentecost
Introit: Spiritus Domini
Vidi Aquam
Psalmi at Tertiam
Kyriale IX
Alleluia: Emitte Spiritum
Alleluia: Veni, Sancte Spiritus
Sequentia: Veni, Sancte Spiritus
Offertorium: Confirma hoc
Communio: Factus est repente
Salve Regina
Antiphona: Dum Somperentur
Antiphona: Spiritus Domini
Antiphona: Repleti sunt
Antiphona: Loquebantur
Lectio Brevis, responsorium breve
Hymnus: Veni Creator
Antiphona et Magnficat
Abbey of Saint Joseph de Clairval, Flavigny
rec. live, Abbey of St. Joseph de Clairval, Flavigny
TRADITIONS MONASTIQUES CD493 [57.05] 

 


The Abbey of St. Joseph de Clairval is, rather confusingly, based in Flavigny-sur-Ozerain in Burgundy. There was an abbey there from the 7th century until the French Revolution and the remains of the historic abbey buildings now house the Anis de Flavigny candles. 

The Benedictine community of St. Joseph de Clairval was founded in 1972 in the Switzerland by Dom Augustin Joly. The community moved to Flavigny in 1976, settling in the former Minor Seminary of the historic abbey. It seems to be a thriving community, currently numbering some fifty members. 

The abbey run a commercial enterprise, Traditions Monastiques, devoted to making the monastic life better known. Amongst the Icons and books are CDs of plainchant including a number made live at the abbey itself.

This disc, of plainchant for Pentecost, is a live recording of the whole community participating in chant for the mass and for vespers. The disc does rather sound as if someone has simply set up a recording apparatus and left it running during the service. The results have a disarming immediacy even though the recording is not perfect. 

The recording has a good atmosphere, giving a strong impression of the acoustic in which the choir sings; this is always important on a disc like this. The results are attractive and warm. But there is a remarkably emphasis on sibilants which can become a little annoying with repeated listening.

The recording mixes plainchant sung by the entire community (usually with discrete organ support) with more complex chants sung just by the schola (the smaller group of monks responsible for the chant). No indication is given as to the relative size of these groups and the CD booklet fails to elucidate which groups sing when. In fact, considering the CD is intended to enlighten, the booklet is very uninformative, it seems to be aimed at those who know what is going on. Not attempt is made to indicate what the different chants are for and no words are included.

The disc starts with a selection of chant from the mass. The Introit - Spiritus Domini, Vidi Aquam, Psalmi ad Tertiam, Kyrie and the Gloria form a natural opening sequence. The Credo is omitted. We then get the two Alleluias, the Sequence – Veni Sancte Spiritus, the Offertorium – Confirma hoc, the Communion – Factus est repente and the Salve Regina.

Some of these items were familiar to me from use in the Latin mass choir in which I sing, but others were new. The only item which is likely to be generally familiar is the lovely Sequence, Veni Sancte Spiritus. The Salve Regina is not sung to the familiar chant.

From the Vespers service we get the 4 Antiphons, Dum complerentur, Spiritus domini, Repleti sunt, and Loquebantur, the Hymn Veni Creator Spiritus, the final Antiphon and Magnificat and the close of the Vespers service.

The advantage of the live recording is that you get a real feel for the atmosphere of the mass; the familiarity of the monks with the chant comes across. They really do sound as if they have been singing the music for years. But they are not professional musicians, so some of the cantors sound a little thin voiced and there are problems of ensemble. Though these problems are only such if you expect such music to be sung perfectly, as if by the Tallis Scholars. Here it is intended to be an expression of the worship of the community and ensemble must be understood in this other sense. 

The CD booklet contains only a track listing and a short introduction to the chant. I could discover no recording date. The disc is available on-line from the abbey’s web-site  (see above). Another thing to beware of is that the disc has only two tracks, 1 for the plainchant from the mass and another for the plainchant from vespers. This is most definitely a disadvantage to those listeners who want to explore the various sections of the mass and vespers in more detail.

The whole disc has a suitably meditative atmosphere, whilst preserving a very real feeling of being in a living community; it is certainly not a plastic-packaged product. This warts and all feeling will not appeal to everyone but I loved the disc. If you want to experience chant as sung in a real Benedictine community then do try this.

Robert Hugill

 

 


Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Chandos recordings
All Chandos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing

 

 


EXPLORE MUSICWEB INTERNATIONAL

Making a Donation to MusicWeb

Writing CD reviews for MWI

About MWI
Who we are, where we have come from and how we do it.

Site Map

How to find a review

How to find articles on MusicWeb
Listed in date order

Review Indexes
   By Label
      Select a label and all reviews are listed in Catalogue order
   By Masterwork
            Links from composer names (eg Sibelius) are to resource pages with links to the review indexes for the individual works as well as other resources.

Themed Review pages

Jazz reviews

 

Discographies
   Composer
      Composer surveys
   National
      Unique to MusicWeb -
a comprehensive listing of all LP and CD recordings of given works
.
Prepared by Michael Herman

The Collector’s Guide to Gramophone Company Record Labels 1898 - 1925
Howard Friedman

Book Reviews

Complete Books
We have a number of out of print complete books on-line

Interviews
With Composers, Conductors, Singers, Instumentalists and others
Includes those on the Seen and Heard site

Nostalgia

Nostalgia CD reviews

Records Of The Year
Each reviewer is given the opportunity to select the best of the releases

Monthly Best Buys
Recordings of the Month and Bargains of the Month

Comment
Arthur Butterworth Writes

An occasional column

Phil Scowcroft's Garlands
British Light Music articles

Classical blogs
A listing of Classical Music Blogs external to MusicWeb International

Reviewers Logs
What they have been listening to for pleasure

Announcements

 

Community
Bulletin Board

Give your opinions or seek answers

Reviewers
Past and present

Helpers invited!

Resources
How Did I Miss That?

Currently suspended but there are a lot there with sound clips


Composer Resources

British Composers

British Light Music Composers

Other composers

Film Music (Archive)
Film Music on the Web (Closed in December 2006)

Programme Notes
For concert organizers

External sites
British Music Society
The BBC Proms
Orchestra Sites
Recording Companies & Retailers
Online Music
Agents & Marketing
Publishers
Other links
Newsgroups
Web News sites etc

PotPourri
A pot-pourri of articles

MW Listening Room
MW Office

Advice to Windows Vista users  
Questionnaire    
Site History  
What they say about us
What we say about us!
Where to get help on the Internet
CD orders By Special Request
Graphics archive
Currency Converter
Dictionary
Magazines
Newsfeed  
Web Ring
Translation Service

Rules for potential reviewers :-)
Do Not Go Here!
April Fools




Return to Review Index

Untitled Document


Reviews from previous months
Join the mailing list and receive a hyperlinked weekly update on the discs reviewed. details
We welcome feedback on our reviews. Please use the Bulletin Board
Please paste in the first line of your comments the URL of the review to which you refer.