Thursday, May 22, 2008

Chant and recession?

I learned something very interesting from this article in the Times, yet another piece discussing the Stift Heiligenkreuz monastery. The music industry believes that there is a relationship between the popularity of chant and economic downturns!

Lewis is also hoping that, right now, we are anxious enough to tap into chanting. At the time of the last Gregorian surge, 18 years ago, we teetered on the verge of recession. Here we are again facing economic gloom and environmental doom. “There is a palpable sense of anxiety, and that tends to be associated with seeking sanctuary,” says Lewis. “People turn to soothing music for stress relief.”

More recent articles:

For more articles, see the NLM archives: