Monday, August 15, 2011

Music Monday--Old Roman Chant



This Old Roman chant is from the 6th century, when Saint Benedict of Nursia was living and being educated in Rome.   He soon fled the worldliness that he saw there to seek solitude.

You can hear how ancient this is!  Very, very like the eastern Christian chants, and much like other chants from that region as well.   Memorizing.  Modern music just doesn't compare to this.

Here are the lyrics and translation.

Tecum principium in die virtutis tuae in splendoribus sanctorum: ex utero ante leciferum genui te.

You shall have sovereignty in the day of your power
in the beauties of holiness:
you are my son, born before the morning star.

4 comments:

newguy40 said...

Wow. I went over to Youtube and also listened to the Kyrie Gothic chant. Listening to this sacred music is like having an electrical shock run in my head. Incredible.

My wife and I started attending a Sunday EF Mass two months ago. The chant and latin has really opened me up spritually.

I will be listening to more chants. What a rich Catholic heritage we have...

Staying in Balance said...

Isn't this wonderful?! The lyrics are almost as mesmerizing as the chant itself. I really am a big believer in the liturgy being meant to transport us to heaven.

kkollwitz said...

"very like the eastern Christian chant"

Wow! I had no idea Old Roman chant even existed.

It reminds me of Sr. Marie Keyrouz' singing.

Staying in Balance said...

I had to Google her, but I'm glad I did! She's got a beautiful gift. Her Byzantine Orthodox chant reminds me very much of this Old Roman chant. It is so sad that the 2 churches split.

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"Slavery ended in medieval Europe only because the church extended its sacraments to all slaves and then managed to impose a ban on the enslavement of Christians (and of Jews). Within the context of medieval Europe, that prohibition was effectively a rule of universal abolition. "— Rodney Stark

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