BENEDICTINE monks are singing to save their Belmont Abbey church and home.

They hope a new CD of Gregorian chants about to go on sale will make a dent in the £3 million needed to restore the fabric of St Michael and All Angels and the monastery.

Ten years ago monks in Spain created a sensation when they topped the charts for weeks with their album of Gregorian chant.

Within five years it had sold more than five million copies world-wide and is still going strong.

Belmont Abbey monks have a reputation second to none for music and singing but no intention of displaying their talent on CD - it happened by chance.

When the abbey organised a flower festival last summer the monks promised a concert of Gregorian chant as part of week-long festivities.

Visiting the abbey at the time was Christopher Walker, a church conductor and composer based in Los Angeles, who had composed for the dedication of the new cathedral there.

A friend of Father Alan Rees, a former abbot of Belmont and a noted composer too, Mr Walker suggested it be recorded.

The monks decided it was worth a try, Christopher Walker agreed to produce it and sound engineer Richard Jeffrey-Grey, head of music at Clifton Cathedral, did a fantastic job of picking up the wonderful acoustics of the Abbey Church, fitting the work in between writing music for Concorde's final landing at Bristol.

Father Alan, who sang for the recording and played some of the organ music, said it was completed in 24 hours and great fun.

The seven monks who sing the 20 pieces on the CD weren't daunted: "We knew the music well, it was just a matter of taking off a few edges and it was done in a few takes," he said.

Gregorian chant, part of their daily life, comprises old hymns, prayers and psalms sung in unison to a single melody.

Francis Wegg-Prosser, who founded Belmont Abbey in the 19th century , wanted the community to preserve and continue the tradition, said to be one of the treasures of the Western Church.

The finished CD is called In the Presence of Angels, in honour of the many angels around the Abbey, carved in stone or resplendent in stained glass, playing harps and pipes and sounding their cymbals, keeping a watchful eye on the brethren.

Three abbots sing on the CD - Father Paul Stonham the current abbot, Father Jerome Hodkinson and Father Alan Rees who wrote the music for the Mass for the Papal visit to Cardiff an 1982.

A Belmont monk, Father Peter Brady is recognised as a master of chant and he played a leading role, supported by Fathers Brendan Thomas, Benedict Thompson and Dyfrig Harris.

It will soon be in the shops but can be bought from the Bursar at Belmont Abbey for £10. All proceeds will go to the Abbey Appeal Fund.