The following review of BENEDICTA: Marian Chant from Norcia by the Monks of Norcia (De Montfort Music, 2015) was written by my husband. Thank you, Sean!
The simple beauty of Gregorian chant – the eternal beauty of chant is prayerful, rich, and necessary in our age. BENEDICTA is the Monks of Norcia’s first ever international recording. The Monks of Norcia, in the sincerity of their prayer are able to draw the listener into the mind and heart of the Church’s expression of faith. The mysticism of the chant, the serenity and timeless beauty of its ancient tradition, the meditative and celestial qualities of the recording transport the listener to a spiritual light. We are reminded that our eternal destination lies beyond the earthly allure. As the listener enters into the contemplative mystery of prayer they are reminded of the spiritual land that indeed awaits those who hope in the Lord. These are the transcendent thoughts that the official music of the Church inspires.
Pope Benedict XVI wrote: “The chanting of the Office continues to sustain the whole Church around the world.”
This album is particularly unique in that the music is not part of any mass settings as many other chant CD’s from monks have done in the past. As the title reveals, the chants recorded in this album are dedicated to the Marian Feast Days found in the divine office and devotional hymns outside of the mass. From De Montfort Music:
“Inspiring, beautiful music of Chant at it’s very best – from Italy by The Monks of Norcia. BENEDICTA: Marian Chant from Norcia is the title for this new recording of 33 tracks of Gregorian chant, including favorite Marian antiphons such as “Regina Caeli” and “Ave Regina Caelorum” but also previously unrecorded chant versions of responsories and a piece originally composed by the monks (“Nos Qui Christi Iugum,”) Some pieces are sung by the entire group, some by smaller ensembles of monks and others by soloists, imbuing ‘BENEDICTA’ with a variety of sound. Recorded on location at the monastery in Norcia, Italy, the album was produced by 11-time Grammy Award-winning producer Christopher Alder and engineered by Grammy-Award winning engineer Jonathan Stokes.”
Today I have the privilege of being able to offer my visitors here at Shower of Roses a chance to WIN one of three copies of BENEDICTA before you can buy it! The giveaway will remain open through Monday, May 25th and the winners will be announced in this post and contacted by email on Tuesday, May 26th. De Montfort Music will mail the CDs directly to the winners so that they can arrive just before the album is released!
Please help spread the word about this beautiful and unique new album, and be sure to enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter box below:
So beautiful! Perfect for our morning music!
2015-05-18 22:14:32
JMJ THESE. Fingers crossed! ;o)
2015-05-18 22:44:16
Just beautiful! Thank you for all of your chant CD recommendations!
2015-05-18 22:46:49
How beautiful! Thank you Jessica <3
2015-05-18 23:08:22
Thanks for the giveaway!
2015-05-18 23:34:11
Thanks for the giveaway!
2015-05-18 23:41:15
I've been looking at the Ephesus cd's wanting to include more Catholic music into our daily lives. This sounds great too! Thank you for another wonderful giveaway opportunity. 🙂
2015-05-19 00:07:52
would be a beautiful addition to our home 🙂
2015-05-19 00:41:39
These chants are very special and beautiful. Thanks for the giveaway, Jessica!
2015-05-19 00:46:50
Great giveaway! Would love to win!
2015-05-19 01:11:58
What a wonderful giveaway! This would be great to have in our home:)
2015-05-19 01:44:46
What beautiful prayers and beautiful music! Thanks for offering the giveaway!
2015-05-19 02:05:23
Exciting! Thanks for the giveaway!
2015-05-19 02:07:42
Thanks for offering this opportunity to win!
2015-05-19 02:16:15
This sounds beautiful! Thank you. The children's book listed at the monk's website also looks lovely.
And since I'm logged in I'd like to add how much I appreciate your blog. It is a huge resource and inspiration to me. Thanks!
2015-05-19 02:26:37
LOVE LOVE LOVE Gregorian Chant!!! Thanks for hosting!
2015-05-19 04:34:16
Thank you Jessica. Do you have a copy of their children's book? I value your reviews and my children and I have enjoyed following your blog for about four years now. Thank you for continuing to encourage us all.
2015-05-19 05:15:18
This is gorgeous! I love everything I just learned about these monks. How wonderful that so many young men are being drawn to it too!
2015-05-19 05:20:39
Thank you for the kind comment, Andrea! The children's book is indeed lovely! One of our boys received it in his Easter basket this year. 🙂
2015-05-19 05:56:41
My husband would especially love this, such a great giveaway!
2015-05-19 09:43:11
Such beauty. Thank you for this wonderful giveaway.
2015-05-19 10:39:54
A friend of ours works for the monks remotely, and when Fr. Cassian was visiting him in Des Moines, we had the privilege of going to a Mass by him in the extraordinary form! I'm sure this CD is just beautiful. (And so is their beer, by the way! 🙂 )
2015-05-19 10:56:52
My husband loves gregorian chant and I have listened to many different ones. This one is particularly beautiful! I would love to win this for him and give it to him for father's day!
2015-05-19 12:36:01
Such calming music. Really lets you focus on what's really important. Thank you for the giveaway.
2015-05-19 12:39:03
Beautiful music.
2015-05-19 12:52:39
I am looking to bring some soothing, sacred music into the home. I'm usually a "no music in the home" type of person because I don't like a lot of noise, but with the kids getting bigger and noisier, I think I need some calming noise to counteract the chaos. Thanks for the giveaway.
2015-05-19 13:01:58
Awesome! Thanks!
2015-05-19 14:12:49
This is beautiful music! I would love to listen to it while in my garden! It is, by the way, a "garden of old roses", dedicated to St. Therese! She is my Confirmation saint, so naturally I was drawn to your blog. I have followed both your blogs for a couple of years now, and I just love them! I homeschool as well, and I have 2 wonderful boys (plus a tiny baby in heaven that miscarried) who are close to the ages of your 2 oldest boys. We had wanted a larger family, so I love to see all the things you do with yours! While I'm at it, I just have to mention that one of my boys had a Lord of the Rings birthday party one year, before I found the photos for the one you had, and the cake I made was almost identical to yours! Your Hobbit party inspired the one I had for my other son! Your family remains in my prayers. Keep up the good work!
2015-05-19 14:24:29
Gorgeous! I love Gregorian chant 🙂
2015-05-19 14:34:39
Their chant is so beautiful! I grew up listening to Gregorian chant and it makes it so much easier to forget the distractions and pray.
2015-05-19 15:26:43
Another wonderful giveaway!!! I am sure this would be a favorite in our home. God bless!
2015-05-19 15:55:35
I love Liturgical chant…it is so relaxing.
2015-05-19 16:47:19
My children learned several of these songs this school year. The monks sing beautifully!
2015-05-19 17:17:09
Sounds beautiful! Would love to win! Thanks for the wonderful giveaway! The children's book looks so neat. God bless you and your family.
2015-05-19 17:20:36
Thank you for the giveaway!
Gregorian chant is so beautiful. My sister and I sing in the girls' choir at our parish church, and we have learned quite a bit of chant over the years! It is truly the music of heaven.
God bless, Allison
2015-05-19 17:29:23
Thank you!
2015-05-19 18:02:01
One can never have enough chant. 😉
2015-05-19 18:06:00
Wonderful! This is just beautiful!
2015-05-19 18:37:46
Thanks for hosting the giveaway. Our family loves chant!
2015-05-19 19:02:45
Thanks for the giveaway!
2015-05-19 20:22:07
We always listen to background music during dinner. Nothing distracting with lyrics that tempt the children to sing to, but music such as chant or classical. If we listen to music with lyrics, it is usually by performers such as Jackie Evancho, Andrea Bucelli, or Josh Groban. Neither my husband or I are "musically inclined", so we always welcome recommendations, like this on!
2015-05-19 20:37:11
This is beautiful and thank you for hosting this great giveaway! Many blessings.
2015-05-20 00:26:31
Sounds lovely, thanks for hosting this giveaway!
2015-05-20 02:50:15
You can never get enough chant. This sounds lovely and would be a nice addition to our collection. Tha k you for the chance to win this giveaway! Thank you for your wonderful blog and all of your helpful suggestions on books and music as they really have been great for my family. God bless you. -Dawn
2015-05-20 10:22:41
absolutely beautiful
2015-05-20 13:00:38
Great giveaway. Thanks so much for your blog!
2015-05-20 16:45:37
Love Chanting!
2015-05-20 18:04:35
Thanks for the giveaway!
2015-05-20 19:09:14
thanks!
2015-05-21 17:40:17
What a wonderful surprise Jessica!! My family is studying about the Order of St Benedict this month!! Perfect timing! You can see more here:
http://familiacatolica-org.blogspot.com/2015/04/celebra-el-ano-de-la-vida-consagrada-en.html
Thank you for the giveaway!!
2015-05-22 02:37:23
Thank you for hosting the giveaway! 🙂 I love listening to chant while homeschooling! God bless!
2015-05-22 03:54:17
PAX
2015-05-22 04:17:38
Thank you for the opportunity to listen to their chant and for the possibility of winning the album!! I find chant so calming and it helps me focus when I pray.
2015-05-22 05:57:26
Great giveaway !!!!!!
2015-05-22 16:52:33
This sounds beautiful, would love to give it to my husband for Father's day.
2015-05-25 13:53:58
This sounds great!
2015-05-25 19:21:29
My non-Catholic husband loves Gregorian chant!
2015-05-26 00:48:26
One of the best giveaways I've ever seen! Thank you for hosting! I love your blog, as a recent convert I have found it very inspirational.
2015-05-26 01:21:01
Beautiful! Thank you for sharing!
2015-05-26 03:05:42
I love these monks!
2015-05-26 03:33:12
I missed the giveaway, but I am going to place an order, and it looks like our OCDS community will be placing a bulk order for the members so that's wonderful for the monks!
2015-05-26 10:02:02
Thank you for your sweet comment, Kristi! We do have their children's book and it is excellent! I mentioned it my New Additions to Our March Book Basket just before the feast of St. Benedict (but saved the book for one of my children's Easter Baskets) and then it was also included in one of the giveaways I hosted earlier this spring! It's definitely worth purchasing! God bless you and your family!
2015-05-19 05:53:32