Anglican Chant Responsorial Psalms for Lent & Holy Week (Year A)
  • CHGiffenCHGiffen
    Posts: 5,150
    Here are my own Anglican chant settings of the Responsorial Psalms for Lent and Holy Week (Year A), from Ash Wednesday through Holy Thursday. Feel free to use them as they are licensed in the Creative Commons.

    Note: Minor revision of the Psalm for Lent 3-A (cautionary flat in the antiphon) uploaded on 2020-03-01.
    Thanked by 3M. Jackson Osborn CCooze noel jones, aago
  • Richard MixRichard Mix
    Posts: 2,767
    Ahh, makes kind of wish I'd procrastinated more in putting The Parish Book of Chant into all those Lent binders.

    Little notes on looking through Ash Wed: 1. I might consider saving the c# till the end and making a C major transition to verses 2. "wipe_ . out my offense" or 2 crochets? 3. acknowledge with one k (before checking I never would have guessed the second hyphen goes after L).
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • CHGiffenCHGiffen
    Posts: 5,150
    Thanks, Richard, for catching the typo in "ack-knowledge" - it's also in the Lent ! A (since the R.P. is the same for Ash Wednesday & Lent 1 A). I've corrected the spelling in Finale and will upload corrected scores soon.

    I didn't put in two crotchets (even in the melody) each time a passing note of the chant gets two syllables, although I guess I could. Often, perhaps usually in some churches, the Anglican chant tone is given alone, with the actual verses to go with the chant set out below, pointed to indicate when & where notes get more than one syllable. The compromise I made here has been to set the verses under the chant, to facilitate singers and organist reading them (which I have found useful when new A.C. is used).

    A previous version (from Year B) actually set out each syllable, in minims (not crotchets when two syllables occur on a given passing note of the chant) that more closely convey the principle that the rhythm is supposed be that of the text, not a metrical subdivision of the music.
  • Richard MixRichard Mix
    Posts: 2,767
    That ambiguity in the pointing would of course be removed by generous spacing. What do you think of the Guimont system, with its underlay of multiple verses with dotted slurs and parenthetical notes?
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,368
    My compliments on these, Chuck. They are beautifully and tastefully done. Superb. I do, though, agree with Richard about that A-major chord at the end of the Ash Wednesday response. A-minor, it seems to me, would be much better here, especially for transitioning to F-major for the verses. And, I might quibble ever so slightly with a pointing here and there, for instance Ash Wednesday's and your | Holy . Spirit | take . not | from me. is a little awkward. I would likely have done and your Holy | Spi-. rit | take . not | from me. - which, though, remains not wholly satisfactory. Some such lines really don't admit of perfect solutions, do they! Still, you haven't committed any accentual sins, and the musical flow is well graced. Your chants are quite nice - lovely. I hope that your work receives the wide acceptance it deserves. Kudos!
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • CHGiffenCHGiffen
    Posts: 5,150
    At the risk of engendering further harmonic analysis.

    I'll explain how I "hear" the A Major final of the Response followed by the F Major beginning of the Verse. The key is that F Major is really the relative major of D minor, and the progression A Major to D minor is entirely acceptable. Hence, the C-sharp in the A Major chord implies (as a leading tone) the (nonexistent) D in the following (F Major) chord. On the other hand the transition A minor to D minor is weak(er), not to mention that the cadence of the Response is much weaker if the final is A minor.

    So ... Here are new versions of the Ash Wednesday (ABC) and Lent ! A Responsorial Psalms (they are the same) with the final A Major of the Response actually giving way to D minor at the beginning of the Verse. They also incorporate Jackson's suggested pointing change to "and your Holy | Spi • rit | take • not | from me."

    If the A Major ~~> D minor transition "feels" better, then by all means go ahead and use this new version instead. But my ears are happy with the A Major ~~> F Major choice.
    RP-Ash Wednesday ABC-x.pdf
    81K
    RP-Lent 1 A-x.pdf
    80K
    Thanked by 1M. Jackson Osborn
  • M. Jackson Osborn
    Posts: 8,368
    I like the A-Major to D-minor,
    but with regard to A-Major to F-Major I do 'see what you are saying'.
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • CHGiffenCHGiffen
    Posts: 5,150
    *Bumping* for this season of Lent.
  • Richard MixRichard Mix
    Posts: 2,767
    Planning to at least use for Laetare, but penciling in a cautionary b-moll for the word "harden not" anyway! ;-)
    Thanked by 1CHGiffen
  • CHGiffenCHGiffen
    Posts: 5,150
    Likely, I should have put in a cautionary flat! I just replaced the original, above, with the b-moll fixed. Thanks Richard!
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