"Cantus Sororum": medieval Brigittine chants

chonak

Some time ago we got a note from the makers of a recent book of chants published in Finland.

"Cantus sororum" is a collection of transcribed medieval chants sung by Brigittine nuns, edited by musicologist Hilkka-Liisa Vuori. If I understand right, the chants were associated with the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Some samples from an album by duo Vox Silentii are on the net:
Transplantatur ab Jericho: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pq8uFKvM1CI
Benedicamus in laudem Patris: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfxhwo18Apw

An article about the material is on-line at: https://www.voxsilentii.fi/11
The book is available from the editor: https://www.voxsilentii.fi/tuotteet.html?id=0/194639
or from the Catholic Information Center in Helsinki: http://www.katolinenkirjakauppa.net/cantus-sororum-p-931.html

I'll attach a sample page image, and a copy of the book's introduction.

Jeffrey Morse

Fascinating!

igneus

If I understand right, the chants were associated with the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

This assumption seems to be wrong.

The article linked above says "Sisters' liturgy proceeded in weekly cycles so that the same chants and texts were repeated on the same weekdays from one week to the next." The Little Office is a single formulary repeated daily (with some seasonal modifications). The Bridgettine sisters had their proper office, which seems to have been much simplified compared to the regular breviary and strongly Marian in it's content, but (literally) seven times richer than the Little Office of BVM.

a_f_hawkins

Poking around the internet, I discover that the Brdgettine Office is still in use, has been translated into English, and is available here, or from Amazon. A sample office, vespers for saturday, is downloadable. The Syon Breviary runs to 560 pages, very unlike the current Little Office.

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