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Plainchant in nineteenth-century England: a review of some major publications of the period1
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 September 2008
Extract
The history of plainchant in the nineteenth century is dominated by the various attempts at scholarly restoration both in Britain and abroad. Up to the middle part of the century these efforts were concentrated in France, although demands for revival were being voiced in Italy by Pietro Alfieri, and in Germany by Franz Xaver Witt, amongst others. The first scholarly attempt at the restoration of plainchant was made in 1846 as a result of Jean-Louis-Félix Danjou's discovery of the eleventh-century tonary of St Bénigne de Dijon. Like the Rosetta stone, it enabled scholars to decipher the meaning of symbols which had previously eluded them. In this case the manuscript is notated with both neumes and alphabetic script, so that for the first time the melodic ductus of ancient neumes could be interpreted with certainty. This manuscript became the source for the Rheims-Cambrai Graduale Romanum complectens missas, printed in Paris in 1851, later to be published under the auspices of Cardinal Sterckx of Mechelen and edited by Duval and Bogaerts. Despite the quality of the Mechlin Graduale, it did not fail to cause immense controversy. Louis Vitet, for example, ‘was astonished that a group of four notes in the Paris gradual of 1826 should be replaced in the Rheims-Cambrai edition with a melisma of 48 notes’. Other efforts at revival were equally plagued by controversy. Lambillotte's facsimile edition of St Gall 359, published, in 1851, proved to be ‘completely unreliable’, and the 1857 Parisian Graduale romanum upon which it is based ‘contained truncated melodies’.
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References
1 Some of the background information presented here comes from the current writer's forthcoming publication, The English Plainchant Revival (Oxford, 1997).Google Scholar Much of the information, however, is new and not included in that book for reasons of length, particularly in regard to later sources of the Anglican plainchant revival. The reader is therefore referred to the forthcoming publication for further information on topics dealt with here which may be of further interest.
2 Levy, Kenneth and Emerson, John, The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, XTV, 829 (Journal des savants, 1854, p. 92).Google Scholar
3 Ibid. (See Revue de musique ancienne et moderne, I, 1856, p. 231).
4 Ibid.
5 Ibid.
6 Ibid, pp. 829–30.
7 For an examination of Wade's life and influence, see Bennett Zon, ‘Plainchant in the Eighteenthcentury Roman Catholic Church in England (1737–1834): An Examination of Surviving Printed and Manuscript Sources, with Particular Reference to the Works of Wade', John F, D.Phil, thesis, Oxford University, (1993)Google Scholar and Zon, The English Plainchant Revival
8 Anon., The Quarterly Musical Magazine and Review, 5 (London, 1823), 204–5.Google Scholar
9 Vincent Novello, ‘Iste Confessor’ (Vincent Novello), ‘Vexilla Regis’ (Samuel Webbe Junior), and Kyrie ‘Pro-Angelis’ Wesley), (Samuel, A Collection of Sacred Music as Performed at the Portuguese Chapel in London, 2 vols. (London, 1811), 70, 73 and 78, respectively.Google Scholar
10 British Library, Add. MS 11729 (1814).
11 Phillipps, Ambrose Lisle, ‘On the Notation of Plain Chant, and On its Several Characters’, The Little Gradual, or The Chorister's Companion (London, 1847), p. [xv].Google Scholar
12 Kelly, William, The Complete Gregorian Plain Chant Manual (London and Dublin, 1849), p. x.Google Scholar
13 The RevJones, James, ‘Preface’, A Manual of Instructions on Plain-Chant, or Gregorian Music (London, 1845), p. [v].Google Scholar
14 Ibid.
15 Lambert, John, A Lecture on The Music of the Middle Ages especially in relation to Its Rhythm and Mode of Execution, with Illustrations (Devizes: H. Bull, 1847), 22.Google Scholar
16 Ibid., 24–5.
17 Ibid., p. [31].
18 As the complete title page to this work states, the psalms are arranged ‘so as to secure uniformity in the practice of chaunting, according to the Method anciently used in England’. In the introduc tion to the book Lambert writes further ‘As almost every Psalm can be adapted to more than one tone, it has been considered desirable, with reference to the general utility of the publication, to print the stave without notes, which can be easily supplied, according to the Chaunts adopted by different Choirs, and if the present plan should meet with approbation, the Psalms occasionally substituted to those commonly used on Sundays will be printed in a supplement’. This arrangement appears not to have secured the requisite approbation, as there is no evidence of a similar but later publication along the lines Lambert suggests. It is of some interest to note that the practice of omitting music notation from pre-written staves is found in two eighteenth-century English plainchant sources by John F. Wade, The Bona Mors (n. p., 1737), and The Roman Gradual on the Gregorian Notes (n. p., 1737), and one other published by Coughlan, J. P. entitled Plain Chant for the Chief Masses (London, 1788).Google Scholar For further reference to these see Zon, The English Plainchant Revival and ‘Plainchant in the Eighteenth-century Roman Catholic Church in England (1737–1834)’.
19 Anon, [‘A Chorister’], The Rambler, 10 (1848), 510.Google Scholar
20 Ibid., 511.
21 Anon., The Tablet, 10/454 (London, 1849), 26.Google Scholar
22 Anon., The Dublin Review, 25 (London and Dublin, 1848), 372.Google Scholar
23 Reinagle, Alexander R., ‘Preface’ A Collection of Psalm & Hymn Tunes, Chants, and other Music, as. Sung in the Parish Church of St Peter's in the East, Oxford (London, 1840), 3–4.Google Scholar There are actually two editions of this work. The first is undated and gives no preface. The second was printed under the same title in 1840 and provides a preface of Dec. 13th, 1839, by Walter Hamilton. It is presumably on the basis of this preface that the earlier edition is generally dated 1839.
24 [Frederick Oakeley] in Redhead, Richard, Laudes Diurnae (London, 1843), p. [1].Google Scholar
25 Dyce, William, The Psalter, or Psalms of David, Pointed as they are to be sung or said in Churches (London, 1843), ‘Appendix’, p. [22].Google Scholar
26 Ibid.
27 Ibid., pp. [36]–[38].
28 Ibid., p. [44].
29 The Rev. Helmore, Thomas, A Practical Lecture on Plain Song (Oxford, 1854), 54.Google Scholar
30 Ibid.
31 Ibid., 6.
32 Ibid.
33 Ibid., 7.
34 The Rev. Helmore, Thomas, Plain-Song (London, 1877), 18.Google Scholar
35 The Rev. Helmore, Thomas, Accompanying Harmonies to the Psalter Noted (London, 1849), pp. [v]–vii.Google Scholar
36 Ibid., vii.
37 The Rev. Helmore, Thomas, S. Mark's Chant Book (London, 1853), 75.Google Scholar
38 Ibid., ‘Preface’, p. v.
39 Amongst those works of the 1860s advertised are , Helmore'sS. Mark's Chant Book (London, 1853)Google Scholar and Accompanying Harmonies to the Ferial Psalter (London, 1869)Google Scholar, both found in the pages preceding p. 1 of no. 1. Novello's The Gregorian Chant for the Miserere (in the advertisement pages preceding p. 1 of no. 2) appears to be an adaptation of an earlier work of 1850. An in-depth examination of advertisements for other publications in the magazine will almost certainly show that many sources of the 1850s and 1860s were being reprinted in the late 1870s.
40 Stainer, John, The Canticles of the Church Arranged to Gregorian Tones, 1st series (London, 1873), 3–4.Google Scholar
41 William Ardley, Magnificat ‘Set to the Eighth Tone, 1st Ending. Arranged with Vocal Harmonies to the alternate verses, the Plain Song being in the Tenor’, in London Gregorian Choral Association. Festival Service in S. Paul's Cathedral, on Thursday Evening, May 7th, 1874 (London, 1874), 13. It is worth mentioning that although Stainer is given on the title page of the Festival Service as organist to the cathedral, it was C. Warwick Jorden (then organist and director of the choir of St Stephen's, Lewisham, and honorary organist of the association) who presided at the organ for the festival.
42 ‘Rules of the London Gregorian Choral Association’, The Gregorian Quarterly Magazine (London, Jan. 1879), 14.Google Scholar
43 Ibid., review, 7.
44 Ibid., passim, 7–10.
45 The series of The Gregorian Quarterly Magazine runs as follows: (1 Jan. 1879), pp. [1]–16; 2 (April 1879), pp. [17]–34; 3 (July 1879), pp. [35]–50; and 4 (Oct. 1879), pp. [51]–66.
46 Stainer, John, A Choir-Book of the Office of Holy Communion (London, 1880), 1;Google ScholarMerbeck's Communion Service as sung at S. Barnabas, Oxford (London, 1885), 3;Google ScholarTredaway, George and Doran, J. W., The Holy Communion Office as noted by John Merbecke (London, 1898), 3;Google Scholar and Collinson, T. H., The Holy Communion from Merbeck (London, 1899), p. [1].Google Scholar
47 The Rev. Doran, J. Wilberforce and Nottingham, Spencer, A Noted Directory of Plainsong (London, 1889), pt. 1, p. iv.Google Scholar A footnote attached to the word ‘intermodal’ refers the reader to the preface of , Doran and Galloway's, E. D.Intermodal Harmonies for the Gregorian Tones (London, n. d.)Google Scholar, a copy of which has unfortunately not yet been located.
48 T. H. Collinson, (see n. 46), [1].