Gregorian Psalmody
  • Palestrina
    Posts: 366
    I've started this thread to ask for suggestions about the following:
    1. Teaching techniques for Latin psalmody - especially where the choir can't read music
    2. Policies for pointing the texts of the English divine office using the psalm tones found in the Liber Usualis.

    I am finding it very difficult to teach people the pointing system, and am encountering problems in adjusting Latin psalm tones to use with English texts, particularly in getting the balance between correct English textual accent and correct musical accent right.
  • mjballoumjballou
    Posts: 993
    Adjusting the Latin psalm tones to English texts is vexing. One of the reasons Tone 8 gets such heavy use is its adaptability to English accents.

    In teaching, I've had the best luck when I keep it simple. Take one tone and stay with it until your singers develop an "instinctive feel" for the melodic pattern. If possible, take a short psalm or section thereof and just sing it at every rehearsal until you don't hear that self-conscious tension at the end of the verse.

    Fr. Weber's suggestions about proper psalmody in the Mundelein psalter are also useful. Pointing makes sense to choir directors. It takes a long time for most singers to catch on because it's something alien.

    I'll be interested in others' comments as well.
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • Bruce E. Ford
    Posts: 429
    The attached article may help you with setting English texts to psalm tones.

    I have posted it previously, but I cannot find it in the archives; so I am attaching it here.
    Setting English Texts to Gregorian Psalm Tones.pdf
    156K
  • RagueneauRagueneau
    Posts: 2,592
    Thanks, Bruce!
  • admin-dev
    Posts: 21
    I heartily endorse Bruce's guidelines, and have followed them rather closely in the setting of verses for my collection of responsorial psalms.
  • Aristotle EsguerraAristotle Esguerra
    Posts: 1,185
    I heartily endorse Bruce's guidelines, and have followed them rather closely in the setting of verses for my collection of responsorial psalms.
  • Palestrina
    Posts: 366
    Thanks, everyone, for your feedback. Very helpful.

    Bruce, I'll be slowly digesting your excellent article over the next few weeks as I have much to learn.

    Have read Sunol's chapter on psalmody which isn't bad... Can anybody think of other resouces on Latin psalmody that might be helpful? I'm making my way through the Rossini book for priests at the moment too.
  • RagueneauRagueneau
    Posts: 2,592
    At the moment, I don't have time to list a complete bibliography (but I can say that many authors have written on this subject).

    However, you might find these helpful.

    You might also like the examples by Bruce Ford in ALL EIGHT MODES


    You might also check out Jean Hébert Desrocquettes' "Accompaniments for the Psalms" (found here)
  • David Sullivan
    Posts: 355
    Palestrina,
    I also recommend spending a good amount of effort to become familiar with the pattern of the Latin psalmody, both for its own sake and to learn it well before adapting it to English. Try learning the Magnificat and the Sunday Vespers Psalms in all the modes--I think they're in the Liber. Learn with your singing voice, not only with your intellect, how the different tones handle the accents. Not just a few times, but until they are very fluid, maybe even memorized. Listen to psalms sung by other groups or on recordings. All this will help in adapting the Gregorian tones to English. You can even make them part of your daily prayer.
  • Palestrina
    Posts: 366
    Bruce, thank you so much for your article on vernacular psalmody. It has been a real revelation. Your methods will be very important in my future editing of Divine Office booklets.

    Jeffrey, thanks for your links. Excellent quality!

    This is where things are right now: I've read through Sunol, Ford, studied the Liber, looked at examples online and studied a few printed booklets closer to home. Through research, I've come up with a set of teaching materials for explaining the broad principles of psalmody and psalm tone accent - so far, restricted to Latin only. I am still researching English psalmody and thinking about how to create a good connection from the Latin to the English.

    Bruce, I like your principles very much, but think that I'll probably adopt a sightly different pointing system to yours. I am in a tricky situation, as I'm trying to teach Latin and vernacular psalmody at the same time, so I will probably make my vernacular pointing a bit closer to the Gregorian method. Please don't take that for one minute as a criticism of your method, which I find very practical and easy to use.

    The other source that I'm looking through at the moment is the Anglican "Manual of Plainsong", which also adapts Gregorian psalm tones for English. Does anyone have any thoughts on this source?
  • dfstone
    Posts: 1
    Regarding the Anglican "Manual of Plainsong", it may be worth noting that there are at least two editions, that of 1902 and that of 1951. The 1902 edition makes more use of abrupt mediations. I am no plainsong scholar, but it would seem that the introduction to the Manual at least addresses all the important points about adapting the psalm tones for English; no doubt those more knowledgeable may be able to point out flaws. The tonary they use is that of Sarum, which is not quite the same as that of the Liber Usualis and other recent Roman books.

    It may also be worth looking at _The Psalms and Canticles at Mattins and Evensong pointed to the eight Gregorian tones from the Sarum Tonale_ by the [Rev.] G.H. Palmer, Wantage, St Mary's Convent, 1963 (if you can find a copy). This also includes an introduction describing the principles of adaption. The psalter text is Coverdale (like the Manual), and includes pointing for every psalm to every tone (unlike the Manual, which rather arbitrarily chooses one particular tone for each psalm). Obviously one needs all tones if the psalm is to be used with a variety of antiphons.

    There is no doubt that the 1902 Manual is usable; my own (Anglican) church uses it every Sunday. Whether better adaptions are possible I don't know, nor do I know how good modern Catholic translations are for chanting.
Add a Comment