Contemporary Liturgical Song in Catholic Monasteries

While a great deal has been written about Gregorian chant from a historical perspective, Strinnholm Lagergren’s study is the first to describe this and other types of liturgical music in present-day monasteries. The Second Vatican Council in 1962-65 opened up for a greater degree of musical diversity in Catholic liturgy- a decision which clearly influenced today’s Catholic liturgy. To complete her study,Strinnholm Lagergren visited more than 20 Benedictine, Carmelite, Bridgettine, Cistercian and Dominican monasteries in Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, GreatBritain, France and Italy. One of the most important findings is that Gregorian chant in Latin is an important part of liturgical music performed in manymonasteries, but that monasteries where liturgical repertory consists exclusively of Gregorian chant in Latin make up a very small minority. Gregorian chant sung inthe vernacular language and new compositions (often composed by the respective monasteries’ own monks and nuns) are much more common.

The Second Vatican Council has led to tremendously diversified musical repertoires in the Catholic Church – repertoires that are sometimes unique to individualmonasteries. As a reaction, a process of so-called Re-gregorianisation started in the early 1990s, meaning that monasteries started to show an interest in returning to Gregorian chant in order to re-connect with their Catholic heritage and Catholic traditions, and to homogenise the Catholic liturgy. Karin Strinnholm Lagergren is a musicologist, pedagogue and singer with a special interest in medieval music.

Title: Ordet blev sång. Liturgisk sång i katolska kloster 2005–2007
Doctoral disputation October 15