It was St Benedict’s wish that all of his monks should ardently long for the arrival of Easter from the beginning of Lent, 40 days earlier. The chants on this disc express much of the asceticism, sorrow, longing, majesty, celebration and exultation involved in the story of Easter. The chants were composed at varying times, not specifically given in the liner notes except in a few instances, but date as far back as the 6th century. The liner notes provide the text and message of each chant, along with its emotional content. The chants are written in various musical modes [musical scales]: Ionian, Dorian, Phrygian, Lydian, Mixolydian, Aeolian and Locrian, of which some are major, some minor and some ambiguous. The modes vary in emotional impact.