Chant is not
a Spectator Sport: Hildegard von Bingen
in modern times
by Norma Gentile
Recording Artist, Healer and Channel
What is music? From Hildegard von Bingen's perspective it was a shared experience of communion with the divine. Hildegard (1098-1179) and the women who surrounded her celebrated eight offices (services) each day, as was the Benedictine lifestyle. These offices were primarily sung. Members of the village, pilgrims and others were invited to join them in some offices, but it was the sisters, gathered together in prayer, who were the centerpiece.
Hildegard referred to her music as a translation of the Cosmic Symphony. In a letter to the Archbishop of Mainz, she said that singing God's praise was an "echo of the harmony of heaven."
To place it in modern terms, chant is not a spectator sport. It is a means of joining with others in the connection to the divine that is a shared experience.
When singing Hildegard's music there is no room for thought. There is a living creation being formed. This is a place that we each know, and that as we approach we recognize as a feeling of home, of belonging. In the midst of singing, there is an underlying stillness. The stillness is home; it is the divine connection.
From the earliest memories that Hildegard shares, she experienced heavenly sights and sounds. The visions, depicted in a series of illustrations made under her guidance, often show both beauty and horror – heaven and hell - in the Catholic context that Hildegard consciously understood.
Just as Hildegard translated her visions into artwork, she translated the sounds into music.
In her writings and letters she refers to hearing a voice speaking directly to her, as well as to sounds which she interprets as divine music, or heavenly harmony.
There is no applause. There may be several long pauses between chants. In those pauses there is silence. The silence is not empty – as the concert progresses the silences become richer, as if filled with tones humming just out of earshot.
From hearing sounds like 'a delightful resonance in the clouds' to that of rushing winds, Hildegard's experiences of spirit are multi-faceted; including sight, sound, fragrance and touch.
The experience of the divine in Hildegard's life was one of intimacy, in each moment. When she writes, "the body must raise its voice in harmony with the soul for the praise of God", it is as a statement of physical fact. The individual body and sacred community are nourished by communal acts, such as singing.
Unison drones, or unbeating octaves and perfect fifths are wonderful with a large group. They provide the perfect medium for singing chant. After a few chants the entire building seems to be singing, and overtones ring down from the church ceiling. This is the ultimate orchestra without a conductor – everyone in the room attends to the moment, and something wonderful is born out of our unified attention.
Or, as Hildegard puts it ...
“O creation of God which is human, in great sacredness you were brought forth… so that those angles ministering with God might see God in humanity.”Norma Gentile, MM in voice, has recorded four solo CDs of chant by Hildegard von Bingen, authors a monthly syndicated column on sound energy healing, and is a professional intuitive sound healer. Norma has appeared on CBS TV, demonstrating live the properties of Gregorian style chant to relax the physical body, and has been profiled by NPR’s All Things Considered, and the Toronto Star Newspaper. Her talents are recounted in the new book “The Last Ghost Dance”, and her music or articles appeared in Yoga Journal, Creation Spirituality Magazine, Gramophone Magazine,(England), the Natural Awakenings chain of magazines, and many more. For more information, including music and articles, www.healingchants.com.
International Sound Therapy Association presents Winter Solst-ISTA, a candlelight meditation concert featuring nationally acclaimed soprano and intuitive healer, Norma Gentile. Norma’s singing of Hildegard’s chant has a “supernatural presence, concentration, and modal sensitivity” (Washington Post)
Saturday, December 23, 2006 - 7:30 pm - $15 tickets ($10 for ISTA members) Emory Presbyterian Church – 1886 N. Decatur Road, Atlanta, GA 30307 More info and online tickets at www.ISTA-usa.org or www.healingchants.com