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42
b. 3 phrases, each sung 3 times
c. conjunct, wavelike
d. neumatic, then melismatic
III. Life and Music in the Medieval Monastery
A. Monasteries, other religious communities
1. religious seclusion, available to men and women
2. devoted to prayer, scholarship, preaching,
charity, healing the sick
3. arduous discipline
4. daily Offices, singing of psalms
5. preserved, transmitted ancient learnings
B. A Song for Worship by Hildegard
1. Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179)
a. renowned poet and prophet
b. daughter of a noble German couple
c. given to the church as a tithe
d. founded monastery in Rupertsberg, Germany
e. famous throughout Eu rope; advice sought
after
f. sainthood 2012, canonized by Pope Benedict
XVI
g. highly original musical style:
i. resembles Gregorian chant
ii. expressive leaps
iii. melismas: convey meaning of the words
iv. poetry: brilliant imagery, creative language
2. Alleluia, O virga mediatrix
a. prayer to the Virgin Mary, specific occasion:
feast day
b. text by Hildegard: not “Gregorian”
c. new praise song used in liturgy, controversial
d. three- part structure
e. responsorial: group repetition of leader’s text-
music phrase
i. roots in ancient Jewish practice
OUTLINE
I. Plainchant: Music of the Church
A. Pope Gregory the Great (r. 590–604)
1. codified church music; liturgy
a. liturgy: set order of church ser vices
b. music at core of Christian prayer
2. more than 3,000 Gregorian melodies
a. composed anonymously
b. belief in divine composition
c. Greek, Hebrew, and Syrian influences
B. Plainchant, Gregorian chant
1. single- line melody: monophonic texture
2. follows inflections of Latin text; free- flowing,
non- metric
3. avoids wide leaps; gentle contours
4. text settings: syllabic, neumatic, melismatic
5. early chant: oral tradition
6. early notation: neumes suggest melodic contour
7. modal: modes pre de ces sors of major and minor
scales
II. The Mass
A. Reenactment of Christ’s Last Supper
1. most solemn ritual of the Catholic Church
2. Mass liturgy:
a. Proper: variable portions
b. Ordinary: fixed portions
3. Gregorian melodies central to the Mass
B. A Gregorian Melody: Kyrie
1. Kyrie: first in the Ordinary
a. Greek prayer for mercy; central-
Mediterranean Christian tradition
b. symbolic three- part form: evokes the Trinity
2. LG 2: Gregorian Chant: Kyrie (10th century)
a. a cappella; sung antiphonally
CHAPTERfi14 Voice and Worship: Tradition and
Individuality in Medieval Chant
Voice and Worship: Tradition and Individuality in Medieval Chant | 43
lends itself to more intimate (cloistered?), personal
expression? Why?
ASSIGNMENT SUGGESTION
Chant as a form of sung worship is common in many of the
world’s spiritual traditions. Islam maintains its own chant tra-
dition in the reciting of the Qur’an as well as in the adhan,
TEACHING CHALLENGES
dition of religious orders, including those that continue to sing
plainchant in worship ser vices.
SUPPLEMENTAL REPERTORY
The Gregorian chant repertory is well documented in recordings.
Some common recording groups include the Clervaux Benedic-
tine monks of the Abbey of St.Maurice and St.Maur, Gloriae
SUPPLEMENTAL BIBLIOGRAPHY
hensive collection of Gregorian chant as assembled and
renotated by the Benedictine monks of Solesmes in the nine-
Newman, Barbara. Voice of the Living Light: Hildegard of Bingen
and Her World. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of Cali-
fornia Press, 1998. A collection of essays by the world’s leading
3. LG 2: Hildegard of Bingen: Alleluia, O virga
mediatrix (Alleluia, O mediating branch), (Late
12th century)
a. a cappella choir and soloist
b. “Alleluia”: solo intonation, choral response
c. verse: solo voice
i. expressive leap and melisma: “death”
ii. melismatic ending: “chastity”
d. “Alleluia”: chorus
is discussed within the context of medieval monastic and
cloistered communities, as embodied in the life and music of
Hildegard of Bingen.
1. To understand how religious communities such as mon-
asteries and convents fostered the development of wor-
ship music during the Middle Ages
2. To understand and recognize the musical characteristics
of Gregorian chant
3. To become familiar with the life and music of Hildegard
of Bingen
1. Display on the board the quote from St.John Chrysos-
tom that opens Chapter14. Have the class form pairs and
give them five minutes to discuss the saint’s views on
music. Some questions to consider: Why is music, for
God and thus for St.John, the solution to the prob lem of
music do you think would best resolve these issues?
Instrumental? Vocal? What about texture? Form?
2. Take students through the listening guide for Hildegard
of Bingen’s Alleluia, O virga mediatrix. Follow this by
44 | Chapterfi14
MODEL RESPONSE
Much of Hindu devotional music is dedicated to the expres-
sion of love for a divine being and shares basic characteris-
tics with the Western plainchant tradition. Many of the
songs and chants are based on clearly defined scale patterns,
accessible introduction to the subject. Chapter 7 (“Monastic
Chant in Time and Eternity”) elaborates on the phenomenon of
Gregorian chant as a personal yet communal expression of faith
and spirituality within the monastic experience. Also includes a
recorded set of chants sung by the author and with detailed musi-
cal analyses.
