January/February 2003 Spirituality
Hildegard and Healing Chant

by Norma Gentile

"O creation of God, which is human, in great sacredness you were brought forth…so that those angels ministering with God might see God in humanity"
-Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179)
Vision of the Earth
by Hildegard

Chant is giving voice to God. Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179) and many others have stressed the connection that the arts, and in particular, that music offers us to Divinity. By ‘retuning’ ourselves, we return to spiritual alignment.

The Catholic Church used music, specifically chant, as the basis of worship services until this century. In the tradition of the Benedictine nuns, they sang eight Divine Offices or services each day. These services were supplemented with hours of private prayer and psalm recitation. The function of the Benedictine nuns was to be vessels or channels for the Divine to enter into the earth through their embodiment of spirit.

Many chants were composed by Hildegard, an advisor to popes, the leader of an important German abbey, a healer, visionary, mystic, and one of the earliest-known composers. Hildegard spoke of her music as being a translation of the ‘Cosmic Symphony,’ which she heard during her visions. "Sometimes when we hear a song we breathe deeply and sigh. This reminds the prophet that the soul arises from heavenly harmony," she wrote. The soul itself lives in this music of the spheres, and so it creates a desire in the body to express its sacredness through audible music. In Hildegard’s words, "All the arts serving human desires and needs are derived from the breath that God sent into the human body." Hildegard was writing music for the women who surrounded her in the monastery, and with whom she shared daily worship services.

These chants were meant to be used as vehicles of devotion, and whether or not the general public was present did not alter the use of the music. In other words, the chants were not a presentation of music by the nuns for the general public. They were an expression of the communal spirit shared by the women and that same connection to God. In all likelihood the nuns, a dozen or at times two dozen, would have sung the music in a circle, turning their backs to any public present in the service.

People have always used music as a way of ‘healing’ or ‘retuning’ themselves. From the simple practice of entrainment to the more complicated practices of mantra and overtone chant, the effect of sound making on the body is a shared experience.

By the act of entrainment many types of music relieve stress. Since most chant is based on either no meter or a rhythmic flow which is slower than the average resting heart rate we tend to relax when listening to it.

Anytime we are listening to music we are not only entraining our bodies to that music, but we are also listening to the emotional, mental and physical state of the performer. I believe that music acts as a medium for the transmission of both conscious and unconscious information. That includes experiencing in our own bodies the nervousness, passion, open heartedness, or spiritual union that the musicians feel during the performance or recording process.

In making any sound, whether it is spoken or sung, I find that my intent, both conscious and unconscious, rides in my voice. What I am experiencing is offered to the listener on all levels.

It is when we allow ourselves to be in an attitude of gratefulness for anything that we can more fully embrace the gifts that it has brought us. Music moves me to this point. It is my desire that through me Hildegard’s chants may move out to touch others as well.

Blessings to all who read this-

A trained intuitive and noted Energy Healer, Ms. Gentile’s concerts and recordings of Hildegard’s music have garnered acclaim from both spiritual and classical music reviewers. She is also the author of numerous articles on music, healing, and spirituality. See her website, www.healingchants.com for additional information.
Norma will be performing in Portland at The Old Church on January 24 at 8pm, and give a workshop on sound healing on Sunday January 26th at Opening to Life. 503-257-7623 or see the calendar listings for more information.