(RNS) Pope Benedict XVI has signed with a major record label to cut an album of songs and prayers to the Virgin Mary.
Geffen Records, whose artists include Ashlee Simpson and Snoop Dogg, will release “Alma Mater,” featuring the pope’s chants and prayers along with eight original classical compositions, on Nov. 30.
Benedict’s voice, in Latin, Italian, Portuguese, French and German, was recorded in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican and during papal trips abroad.
“The Pope has got almost a lullaby tone to the way he sings,”
Geffen’s president Colin Barlow told Britain’s Telegraph newspaper, adding that the album will make a “great Christmas present.”
“There’s quite a huge Catholic fan base out there,” Barlow noted.
A portion of the profits from sales will support music education for underprivileged children around the world.
In his recording venture, Benedict follows the lead of his predecessor Pope John Paul II, who released several albums during his 26-year pontificate, including one of him praying the Rosary. According to the BBC, that album rose to number 50 on the sales charts.
— Francis X. Rocca
Religion News Service
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