The Curious Rebirth of Gregorian Chant
5th April 2025
t’s often said that there’s an audience for everything. In our very online age, previously niche pursuits seem to gain recognition at an unprecedented rate. One nineteen-year-old has amassed a following of 140,000 people by attempting to lift a large log over his head each day for almost a year; he has never succeeded. Another young man became an overnight sensation for his enthusiastic trainspotting videos; he has now gained over three million followers on TikTok, along with a modelling gig with Gucci and a Channel 4 documentary series. It is not uncommon for individuals to become well-known for unusual things. What is uncommon, however, is when the unusual interest itself becomes popular.
Out of all the cultural pursuits one might have guessed may have a resurgence in popularity in modern times, Gregorian chanting would not have been top of my list. However, it seems that this ancient and unorthodox (get it?) musical form has now acquired a new and surprising popularity.
For those unaware, Gregorian chant is the main form of unaccompanied sacred song practiced by the Catholic Church. It is monophonic, meaning there are no chords or harmonies other than the main tune, and it is sung in either Latin or, occasionally, Greek. It developed widely throughout Western and Central Europe in the latter part of the 9th century. In the increasingly secularised Europe of today, where the population of Catholics decreased by almost half a million people in 2022 alone, why is this old, seemingly anachronistic musical tradition coming back to the forefront? And why is it cool?
Because it just is. Vexilla regis prodeunt…. I have a Pandora channel set up for Gregorian Chant, and I use it as background music because it is very relaxing. I can imagine myself in an Irish monastery with nothing to do but eat, sleep, pray, and copy manuscripts by hand. If I could retire to such a monastery, I would.
Sometimes the old ways are best.