Is plainchant monophonic or polyphonic?
Plainchant is a form of early Christian music which is monophonic in form, with a single melody sung by an entire group of performers, classically without accompaniment. Plainchant was used to recite the Christian liturgy well through the 13th century, when polyphonic modes began to dominate.
What is the difference between polyphonic and polyphony?
is that polyphonic is (music) having two or more independent but harmonic melodies; contrapuntal while polyphony is (music) musical texture consisting of several independent melodic voices, as opposed to music with just one voice (monophony) or music with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords (homophony).
Is there a difference between plainchant and Gregorian chant?
Plainchant is a form of medieval church music that involves chanting or words that are sung, without any instrumental accompaniment. It is also called plainsong. Gregorian Chant is a variety of plainchant, although the two terms are often incorrectly referred to as synonymous.
What does the word plainchant mean?
Plainsong (calque from the French « plain-chant »; hence also plainchant; Latin: cantus planus) is a body of chants used in the liturgies of the Western Church. When referring to the term plainsong, it is those sacred pieces that are composed in Latin text.
What period is plainchant?
Plainchant, or plainsong, is also known as Gregorian chant and forms the core of the musical repertoire of the Roman Catholic Church. It consists of about 3,000 melodies collected and organized during the reigns of several 6th- and 7th-century popes.
What is polyphonic plainchant?
Gregorian chant is the central tradition of Western plainchant, a form of monophonic, unaccompanied sacred song in Latin (and occasionally Greek) of the Roman Catholic Church. Multi-voice elaborations of Gregorian chant, known as organum, were an early stage in the development of Western polyphony.
What is the difference between chanson and plainchant?
As nouns the difference between chanson and plainchant is that chanson is any song with french words, but more specifically classic, lyric-driven french songs while plainchant is (music) a form of monophonic liturgical chant employed in various catholic and orthodox liturgies.
What is plainchant based on?
Plainchant is based on the major/minor system.