Reddit mentions: The best sacred & religious music

You have way more than two options this Christmas and both of the ones you mentioned are as good as any other. Of course, much will depend on where you are mentally. Christmas is just another day. You don’t have to give it such enormous significance. Nevertheless, you could indulge yourself and celebrate it in any number of ways if you so choose. If you have good health, secure accommodation and food in your stomach, there’s already a lot to be thankful for. You’re already doing better than 95% of the planet.

If you spend Christmas alone, some good food and drink, dimly or candle lit living spaces, J.S Bach’s St Matthew Passion ([Sir John Eliot Gardiner’s recording]( https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bach-Matthew-Passion-Johann-Sebastian/dp/B0000057DG "Title")) playing in the background, should do the trick. What’s not to love? This is better than the way a lot of other people with families will be spending their Christmas.

If you must be around people, then the mum option is there. So what, if they have families? You’re better off, you’re free. Alternatively, you could volunteer at a homeless charity. That would give you a profound appreciation of how lucky you are, could be very rewarding and would introduce you to new people. Another option might be to arrange something with others in the same boat as you. I’m sure you can find different things going on locally via the internet.

Non-mercenary and non-co-dependent romantic relationships are about attraction, not love. What we describe as love only comes after the attraction. With that in mind, do what you need to do to become more attractive, but don’t sweat it. Relax and enjoy the process. In that regard, I think that an abundance mentality is a good way of not appearing desperate, which will hurt your success. Don’t overplay it though. Just behave normally, with a smidgen of nonchalance.

Also, it sounds to me like you are bored. Therefore, I suggest you embark on a project. Resolve to achieve a particular goal or pick up a new skill, maybe decide to master a musical instrument and start attending lessons. Join a group of likeminded people. Really, there’s no reason to be bored in this world. There are so many opportunities and things going on, particularly in the West and in big cities. Having a mission will engage you in life more and draw in many additional benefits, including potential female suitors.

Everyone here will recommend classical music written between from 1650-1850, but you owe it to yourself to check out Renaissance and Medieval music while you're at it. There was so much neglected but amazing stuff written before 1600.

Ronn McFarlane has some fantastic solo lute albums. If you prefer quiet beautiful introspective melodies, DEFINITELY pick up his albums "The Renaissance Lute" and "Between Two Hearts".
He's also a member of the Baltimore Consort, and their work is quite good if you find you want more of this genre.

If you want beautiful music to wash over you and bring you to tears, listen to THIS album of Renaissance choral music. Crank it up LOUD! It's like angels tickling your insides.

Medieval music has more dissonances in it, so you may or may not like it, but give it a shot. I like the quieter meditative pieces that sound like a twisted music box. Here are some decent CDs:

• Music For a Medieval Banquet
  
• Medieval Dance Music
  
• Songs and Dances of the Middle Ages
  
• Trouveres
  
• Sinners and Saints - older recording, and more 'orchestral' (with a few less good vocal pieces) but some really good spots.
  
  
  Of course, on the Rock side of things, just buy the entire Led Zeppelin discography. Sitting through Led Zeppelin IV is a religious experience!
  
  Oh, and The Beatles post 1965 - sooooo many colors in their sounds ... Sgt Pepper, Magical Mystery Tour, Abbey Road, hell buy those too!

The Benedictine Monks of Santo Domingo de Silos have a classic album called Chant.

If you don't mind a cleaner, more professional sound, the group Chanticleer released a fantastic album of chants called Mysteria.

Some people enjoy the chant albums created by the group Ensemble Organum. They are high quality but not for everyone.

Another excellent album done by professionals (as opposed to monks) is 12th Century Monophonic Chant by Paul Hillier / Theatre of Voices.

For an authentic chant sound, recorded in a monastery, check out Salve Regina by the Benedictine Monks of the Abbey of Saint-Maurice and Saint Maur, Clervaux. On Amazon it's listed under the generic artist name "Benedictine Monks."

If you're looking for propers, a good one is Alberto Turco's Adorate Deum / Gregorian Chant from the Proper of the Mass.

Another good chant album that contains a couple of Masses, including the sublime Missa de Angelis, is a 3 CD set sold on Amazon.

One more. Chant - Music for Paradise (also known as Music for the Soul) is very good. The antiphon for In Paradisum, the first track, brings me to tears.

You can find a lot of these on YouTube.

As a musician who specializes in early music, I often use medieval and renaissance pieces for my rituals. Favorites include renaissance lute fantasias (tons of recordings available from Paul O'Dette, Ronn McFarlane, and Nigel North), Renaissance choral music, and more mystical/meditative medieval pieces (Sequentia has some great stuff with vielles and harps). There is a huge range of sounds/textures from the middle ages that can be very meditative. Some Examples: Organetto & drum, recorder and percussion, meditative vocal music (Anonymous 4 are a great group, and vielles.

I've also found North Indian classical music on Sarangi or Sitar, and Arabic classical music (Oud taqsim/improvisations especially) to be very effective during rituals. If I was using medieval or renaissance grimoires, I'd use appropriate music from those time periods. For general work, middle eastern and Indian music is always a good choice.

My favorite set of choral music comes in the modestly named The Best Choral Album in the World... Ever!.

I'd also throw in some fun madrigal style things like My Bonnie Lass She Smelleth.

i'd go with anner byslma, but i'm biased because his were the first cello suites recordings i fell in love with. the thing with classical music, is that you will fall in love with a particular kind of musician. i'd also add elgar's cello concerto by jaqueline du pré, and st. matthews passion directed by phillige herreweghe

Love the guys requiring gigantic orchestras, especially Wagner, Holst, and Berlioz.

I've really began getting into choral pieces, too. Anything in the Sacred Treasures collection is especially amazing, and will practically make you want to convert to Russian Orthodoxy on the spot.

1. A beautiful piece and recording.
   
   
   2)Do you really think that those melismas are most peoples' ideas of chant? It is characteristic of that area and time period, but unfamiliar to modern expectations of chant.
   
   
   
2. Here is the amazon link. The first review is excellent and points out this was commissioned by an abbess who supervised both male and female clerics. Interesting thought for the Church in 2014. The reviewer also points out the harmonic tools used here that are similar to 20th century music.
   
   
   
3. My parish's choir could never do this in 100 years. Blame cheapskate congregations for poor music.

Agree with Vivaldi (winter) or Vivaldi-inspired, but really not familiar with his choral works. Found a link on amazon to samples that might help in the search, could it be from Gloria R. 589?

Some quality boxsets to consider:

• Magnificat 500 Years of Choral Masterworks
  
  
• The All Baroque Box: From Monteverdi to Bach
  
  
• L'Oiseau-Lyre: The Baroque Era
  
  
• Archiv Produktion 1947-2013 - A Celebration Of Artistic Excellence From The Home Of Early Music
  
  
• Sony Vivarte Collection
  
  
• The John Eliot Gardiner Collection
  
  
• Leonard Bernstein: The Symphony Edition
  
  
• Murray Perahia - The First 40 Years
  
  
• Tomás Luis de Victoria: Sacred Works
  
  EDIT: Oh snap, you were looking for composer boxsets. Still worth to check out if you want
  to explore further eras of classical music or conductors/artists.

Basso Profondo From Old Russia is pretty much the definitive basso profondo choral album. It features the legendary Vladimir Miller as soloist. Great album to sleep to or get lost in a trance.

I LOVE Fretwork's recording of Bach's Kunst der Fugue, but not everyone has the same opinion.

Michael Tilson Thomas' recording of Ives Symphony No. 4 is pretty much definitive.

This recording is my favourite There are only eight singers in this recording including Mark Padmore as the Evangelist.

Mark Padmore is one of the the best I have ever heard, if not the best.

There are a few albums with music by one of my favorite composers, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, that are specifically intended for the Triduum:

• Maundy Thursday
  
• Good Friday
  
• Holy Saturday
  
  There are CDs available somewhere in the ether. Amazon only has one available as a CD, but MP3s are available for all three.

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|album|Prologue, released Apr 2014|
|track|Wasteland|
|images|album image|
|links|mp3 on amazon, album on amazon|
|tags|progressive, symphonic, blackmetal|
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Also - choral settings by Palestrina. When I want to feel clean on the inside, I just put on some Renaissance choral music and blast the house. Holy crap!

Richter

Dude, that was epic. The album with the Lo, He Comes that I posted also has an arrangement of this! Link if anyone would like

National Anthems of the World

Unfortunately, I find that pandora is terrible for classical music and such.

Buy this and this to start your collection.