History of Music, Mr. Robert L. Johnston
Plainsong or Plainchant (The Mass and The Offices, Day 2)
Aim:
How does Plainsong relate to the Roman Catholic Rites
and monastic lifestyle?
Instructional Objectives:
At the conclusion of this unit, students will:
I.
II.
Have defined Plainsong.
Have gained an understanding as to its place in
worship.
III. Have a basic understanding of medieval social
structure and monastic life and its purposes.
IV. Have an understanding as to its geographical
development.
V.
Have an understanding as to its development and
growth as a musical form.
VI. Have an introduction to some of the key figures of
its development.
VII. Have an understanding of its notation.
VIII. Have heard a strong representation of plainsong.
Motivation:
Discuss what happens at Mass, meaning the order of
events.
Development/Procedures:
I.
The Harvard Brief Dictionary of Music defines The
Mass as, “The central service of the Roman Catholic
rites, representing the commemoration and mystical
repetition of the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross
(Eucharist).”
a. The definition continues, “The musical portions
of the Mass fall into two categories, the Proper
and the Ordinary.
i. “The Proper includes the items with variable
texts (and music), that is, Introit,
Gradual, Alleluia, Offertory and Communion.
1. “The items of the Proper are much
older, liturgically more important, and
musically more elaborate than those of
the Ordinary.”
ii. “The Ordinary includes items with invariable
texts, that is, Kyrie, Gloria, Credo,
Sanctus and Agnus Dei.”
1. “For each of the [above] a number of
plainsong melodies are provided,
according to the character of the
occasion (ordinary Sundays, feasts of
the Lord, of the Virgin, of Saints,
etc.).
b. The Sequence of the Mass.
PROPER
(Unique to each individual Mass)
Introit
ORDINARY
(Used on a seasonal basis)
Kyrie
Gloria
Gradual
Alleluia
Credo
Offertory
Sanctus
Agnus Dei
Communion
c. Read the text (from The Norton Anthology of
Western Music, Volume I) and replay the music
from each of the following sections of the Mass
for Septuagesima Sunday (6:41)
i. Introit (2:13)
ii. Kyrie (2:21)
iii. Epistle (2:07)
II.
The Divine Offices (also called Daily Offices, Daily
Hours, Office Hours or Canonical Hours) are eight
specific times during the day that monks were
required to pray.
a. These times were:
HOUR
TIME of DAY
MASS
Midnight
Appearance of the Morning Star
6:00AM (first hour after
daybreak)
9:00AM (third hour after
daybreak
MASS
Noon (sixth hour after daybreak)
3:00PM (ninth hour after
daybreak)
Rising of the Evening Star
Just prior to retiring for the
night
Matins
Lauds
Prime
Terce
Sext
Nones
Vespers
Compline
b. Based on the above chart, what must have a monk’s
life been like?
c. Just like the Proper of a Mass centering around
the seasonal rhythms of the equinoxes (this is
basically how we determine when Easter is each
year), the Offices are ordered by the rhythms of
night and day. (Shirmer)
d. Daily Offices consisted primarily of a weekly
cycle of psalms.
e. Musically there were two types
i. Elaborately ornamental (improvisational)
excerpts of psalm texts
ii. Simpler treatments of a psalm
III. Play Office of Second Vespers – Nativity of Our Lord
(14:30)
IV.
There was a simple structure of medieval society.
a. It should be noted that the Middle Ages lasted
from the fall of the Roman Empire to the
beginning of the Renaissance in Italy (ca. 500-
1300).
b. The triangle structure:
c. Dr. E.L. Skip Knox divides medieval society into
what he calls “The Three Orders,”
(http://history.boisestate.edu/westciv/medsoc)
i. Those who fight (Oratores)
ii. Those who pray (Bellatores)
iii. Those who work (Laborares)
d. Monastic life consisted of prayer and skilled
work. This work could be:
i. Farming, for the monastery and the outside
world
1. Both food and medicinal herbs and
plants
ii. Copying and illuminating manuscripts
iii. Education of novitiates
V.
iv. Prayer (Mass and the Divine Offices)
1. Monks would pray for:
I.
The desire to better understand,
become closer to and love God.
II. For their secular benefactors
i. These were usually land
owners who gave the monks
land to use
III. For their families in the
secular world
i. Most monks prior to the 12th
century were the lesser-born
sons of nobles and
landowners.
ii. Nobles would send these sons
to the monastery in the hopes
that they would receive the
graces of God through
prayers.
Of course, Catholicism is not the only religion with
monastic orders.
a. Play Sangwa Dupa from Tibetan Buddhism - Tantras
Of Gyuto (41:37) through end of class.
i. This is an example of Tibetan Buddhist chant
practiced by Buddhist monks.
Materials of Instruction:
Smart Board
Internet
The Norton Anthology of Western Music, Volume I
Norton Anthology Of Western Music, Vol. 1 (Disc 1)
Summary:
The vast majority of Medieval monastic life centered
around striving to become closer to God through daily
prayer, work and service. This lifestyle produced the
beginning of the largest and oldest single body of
Christian music. It is from this music that all Western
music developed from. (Miller)
I should point out that much of the material on
medieval and monastic life was taken from, “Monastic Piety in the
Middle Ages,” presented by Lauren Mancia at The Cloisters on August 11th.
Assignment:
The Vespers we heard were approximately 15 minutes.
Therefore the totality of the Divine Offices should be 2
hours, plus 30 minutes for the sung Mass we listened to.
Try to pray over the weekend, starting when you wake
up on Saturday, for 2 1/2 hours, and write a short paragraph
reflecting on your effort.
The other option is to rent Into Great Silence, watch
it, and write a short reaction paper.
Bibliography:
History of Music, Hugh H. Miller, Barnes & Noble
Books, New York. 1972
Shirmer History of Music, Leonie Rosenstiel, general
editor, Schirmer Books, New York. 1982
Norton Anthology Of Western Music, Vol. 1 (Disc 1), (c)
W.W. Norton & Co., Inc. (p) 1988 Sony Special Music
Products
The Harvard Brief Dictionary of Music, Willi Apel and
Ralph T. Daniel, Washington Square Press, New York.
1960
The Norton Anthology of Western Music, Volume I, ed.
Claude V. Palisca, W.W. Norton & Company, New York.
1980
Suggested Reference:
History of Music, Hugh H. Miller, Barnes & Noble
Books, New York. 1972
Dr. E.L. Skip Knox’s page from Boise State University
on Medieval Society,
http://history.boisestate.edu/westciv/medsoc
Robert L. Johnston