Connection from Ancient World to Modern Western music is through the Christian Church

Hebrew Music in early Christian Era

• Two kinds of worship:
• temple: sacrifices, prayers, singing of psalms
• synagogue: reading of scriptures appropriate to times of year
• some details available about instruments
• no written system for music, but they did have Chironomy, system of hand signals to suggest melodic direction
• Christians adopted some of these practices, particularly idea of a liturgical calendar

Early Christian Era

• info on these practices is sketchy, but we do know:
• music for aesthetic pleasure was avoided; also avoided music of festivals, dramas
• services probably included readings from holy books, psalms, hymns, prayers, and celebration of Eucharist (re-enactment of Last Supper)
• very little standardization because of secrecy
• Emperor Constantine recognizes (and protects) Christian Church in 313 AD
• changed official language from Greek to Latin; liturgy was translated
• Late 4th Century Empire splits again into East (Byzantine, capitol at Constantinople) and West (Roman, capitol at Rome)
• Church also splits into East and West, and they take different directions
• Roman Church wanted to standardize practices (liturgy, chant)
• Eastern Church maintained more diverse approaches
• Western Standardization efforts result in standard liturgy and chant; chant is known as Gregorian Chant
• also established Roman singing school (Schola Cantorum) which produced singers who knew the standard repertoire, then took it to outposts of Christianity. Schola Cantorum also established high standards for singing in Christian Church
• Characteristics of Gregorian Chant
• monophonic
• diverse performing forces: soloist, chorus
• responsory singing: soloist chants, choru responds
• antiphonal singing: chorus chants, another chorus responds