The Passion

henrik.hank

Pax!
I looked up the Gospel of Good Friday: http://www.windsorlatinmass.org/chant/gfrpas.pdf
I understand that it has to do with passion/suffering due to the words, the Latin. How does the music tell us that it has to do with passion/suffering? If one listens to Glenn Gould playing the Bach Partita Nº 2, BWV 1004 it would easy to hear the suffering. First of all it is written in a minor scale. What is it musically that tell of the Passion/Suffering in chanting of the Gospel of Good friday? Does it have to do with the voices of the Priest/cantors or the musical mode?

CHGiffen

There are different chanted versions of the Good Friday chanted Passion. In each case, however, there are musical "motifs" that belong to the different people involved - the Evangelist, Christ, and the Turba. If you listen carefully or repeatedly, you will become acquainted with these musical motives and recognize them as the appropriate vehicle for the chanting of this most important text.

The following is the (dare I say, deeply beautiful and moving) Dominican setting (which I have chanted as the Evangelist several times), in which the motives for the Evangelist and Christ are a little more elaborate or melismatic:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3Btb-8HLQM

Salieri

Is there a PDF of this available?

[EDIT:]
Yes, and it's here: http://forum.musicasacra.com/forum/discussion/4540/passion-st.-john/p1

henrik.hank

Do you know why the Passion is taken from the Gospel of John on Good Friday?
Why couldn't it be any of the other Passion narratives?

CHGiffen

I've looked and looked, but haven't come up with exactly what was sung in this (or in what I have sung from), but here is something that is close ... mostly due to changes in the translation of the text, but also a few melodic differences. Anyway, it is pretty close to what is sung in the video.

Somewhere among my old materials, I may have the music that I had sung, and if I find it I'll try to scan it or transcribe it and upload it.

Edit: The score I attached is exactly that in the thread that Salieri has linked to.

CHGiffen

Do you know why the Passion is taken from the Gospel of John on Good Friday?
Why couldn't it be any of the other Passion narratives?

The Passion Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are each assigned as the Gospel for Palm Sunday, in rotation through the 3-year lectionary cycle. The Gospel of John has a different character than the other three, which sets it somewhat apart from the others. Perhaps this has something to do with the reason for the Passion according to St. John being appointed for Good Friday.

Salieri

Traditionally the Passions were read as follows (cf. Gueranger, Liturgical Year):

Palm Sunday: St. Matthew
Tuesday of Holy Week: St. Mark
Wednesday of Holy Week: St. Luke
Good Friday: St. John.

It seems that the ordering is simply that of the Canon of the New Testament.

When the three year cycle was introduced it seems that they just rotated the first three (formerly Sunday, Tuesday, and Wednesday) and kept Friday the same (an odd bowing to tradition for the consilium, but that's another topic...).

Earl_Grey

Since John was the only apostle present at the crucifixion it is fitting that his version of the account be read on Good Friday.

melofluent

EG, I would deduce you haven't read (thus considered) O'Reilly's the KILLING OF JESUS?

G

Please, please, PLEASE don't just accept the minor mode=sad connection.

(Save the Liturgy, Save the World)

chonak

The notion of "minor" was invented a long time after the Church's music was developed.

CHGiffen

I was about to embark on a rant about the old saw that minor=sad and major=happy.

I never knew that "Veni, Veni Emmanuel" was supposed to be sad (it's in Mode I with "ti" flatted to "te" and hence coincides with the standard "minor" mode). Same for "God rest ye merry gentlemen" ... certainly not a sad Christmas carol.

On the other hand, there is the Anton Bruckner 6th Symphony in A Major which pretty much sounds anything but happy.

Even better is the Adagio (3rd movement) of the Bruckner 8th Symphony, and although the nominal key for the symphony is C minor, the Adagio is in D-flat Major ... and it is full of passion, emotion, sadness, redemption ... almost every serious emotion possible except pure happiness. If you have not heard it, here is the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra performance at St. Florian's (Bruckner's "home"). It's one of the most compelling slow movements ever. The performance of the Adagio alone is spread over three videos, but there is also the complete Symphony No. 8 in one video, so I'll include the all. What could be more major key than the concluding measures of the slow movement (at the end of the third video), in which the violins play a slow descending D-flat major scale? Happy? No. Beautiful? Yes.

Bruckner Symphony no. 8 3rd Mov. 1/3 Karajan VPO 1979
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Y0CibA8vuw

Bruckner Symphony no. 8 3rd Mov. 2/3 Karajan VPO 1979
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ancNNnYRUs

Bruckner Symphony no. 8 3rd Mov. 3/3 Karajan VPO 1979
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxKsHu4hulU

And the complete symphony: Bruckner's Symphony No.8 w/Karajan conducting "live" in St. Florian (1979)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXcWw1a8bdo

melofluent

Further digression alert!
While we're browsing "Adagio's," Chuck, and as someone recently wagged about this in another thread, I believe there should be a universal subito santo proviso inserted into the IGRM that the Barber MUST be played (not sung as an Agnus Dei) by a quartet, string orchestra or the pipe organ if a collection is taken before the Cross is processed before veneration. One day soon, I'm gonna collect my very serious thoughts about this incredibly unique piece in a (hold onto your hats, Kathy and RC) cogent argument for such a proposal.
Don't bother to shoot flames at me over this, I know it'll never fly.
But, I will 'splain my rationale anyway down the road a piece. It is infinitely more worthy than its horrific misappropriation by Oliver Stone in the film PLATOON, and subsequent other criminal uses as soundtracks.

Liam

Ah, the Adagio of the Bruckner 8th. When I was a disaffected 9th grader in 1975, my chemistry teacher gave me his copy of Karajan's 1957 EMI recording of the Bruckner 8th. Mr Merkel, may you receive much credit from God for that gesture.

CHGiffen

MeloCharles, you never cease to amaze us!!

Liam, my introduction to Bruckner was from an ancient LP transferred recording on Capitol records (2 LPs) of a live recording of the 5th Symphony in B-flat Major. My sister had persuaded my mother to get it, telling her that surely it would be put to good listening use (did she know something about me?). Indeed it was, and it started me on my Bruckner quest, obtaining recordings of all nine symphonies (in order, except for the 5th) and then the new Nowak editions of the scores. Of course, in the course of the symphonies, I discovered Bruckner's choral music, too. The 5th remains my favorite, as it is a contrapuntal masterpiece and very satisfying to listen to, but the 8th is my second favorite, and the Adagio truly is unparalleled, even if people seem to like the Adagio of the 7th better (because of it's solemnity and connection with the death of Richard Wagner, Bruckner's own idol).

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