Mozarabic chant facts for kids

Mozarabic chant (also called Hispanic chant or Old Hispanic chant) is a special kind of church music. It's a type of plainchant, which means it has a single melody without harmony, like Gregorian chant. This music was used in the Mozarabic rite of the Catholic Church in Hispania (what is now Spain and Portugal).

It was popular when the Visigoths ruled Spain. Later, it was used by the Mozarabs, who were Christians living under Islamic rule in Spain and spoke Arabic. Over time, this chant was mostly replaced by the music of the Roman Rite during the Christian Reconquista (when Christian kingdoms took back control of the Iberian Peninsula).

Even though most of its original medieval form is lost, some chants with musical notes still exist. The Mozarabic rite and its chant were later brought back, though in a changed way. Today, it's still used in a few places in Spain, especially in Toledo.

A Look at Its History

The basic way the Mozarabic rite worked was written down by St. Isidore of Seville in the 600s. An important part of the church service, the Credo (a statement of belief), was added to this rite in 589. This happened when the Visigoths officially became Catholic Christians. (The Credo wasn't used in the Roman rite in Rome until much later, after 1014!)

The city of Toledo

The Mozarabic rite is similar to other old church rites like the Ambrosian rite and Gallican rite. It's different from the Roman Rite. As the Christian Reconquista continued in Spain, the Roman rite slowly took over from the Mozarabic. When a French abbot became the new archbishop of Toledo in 1085 (after the city was recaptured), Roman influence grew stronger. After Pope Gregory VII officially stopped its use, the Mozarabic rite and its chant almost disappeared. It survived in only six churches in Toledo.

Later, in the early 1500s, Cardinal Jiménez de Cisneros helped bring the Mozarabic rite back. He published special books for the Mozarabic Mass and daily prayers. He even set up a chapel to keep the rite alive. However, the chant used in this revived rite was greatly influenced by Gregorian chant. It probably didn't sound much like the original Mozarabic chant from before the Reconquista.

What is Mozarabic Chant Like?

Mozarabic chant is defined by its use in the Mozarabic rite. This rite is more like the "Gallic" church services from northern Europe, such as the Gallican rite and Ambrosian rite, than the Roman Rite.

Musically, we don't know a lot about the original chant. Most of the music that survived is written using neumes. These are symbols that show the shape of the melody, but they don't tell us the exact notes or how far apart they are. Only about twenty sources have music that can be read and played today.

However, we do know some things about Mozarabic chant. Like all plainchant, it was `monophonic`, meaning it had only one melody line without harmonies. It was also `a cappella`, which means it was sung without musical instruments. Following Catholic tradition, it was mainly sung by men.

Just like in Gregorian chant, Mozarabic chant melodies can be put into four main groups:

• Recitation: These are the simplest, mostly using a single repeated note for singing text.
• Syllabic: These chants have mostly one note for each syllable of text.
• Neumatic: These have a small group of notes (often two or three) for each syllable.
• Melismatic: These chants have long, flowing runs of many notes on a single syllable. These runs are called `melismas`.

In both Mozarabic and Gregorian chant, there are `antiphonal` and `responsorial` chants.

• Responsorial chant originally involved a soloist singing a verse, and then a chorus singing a repeated part called the `respond`.
• Antiphonal chant originally involved two groups of singers taking turns singing verses, with a special text called an `antiphon` sung in between.

In later chant traditions, these terms described how the music was structured. In antiphonal chant, the antiphon is usually longer and more melodic than the verse. In responsorial chant, the verse and the repeated part often sound similar.

Mozarabic chants used a different system for singing psalms compared to Gregorian chant. Gregorian chant has eight `musical mode`s (like scales). Mozarabic chant used between four and seven modes, depending on the local tradition. Many Mozarabic chants only have the first few words written down, suggesting that the psalm melodies followed simple, well-known patterns.

Types of Chants

Chants for Daily Prayers (Office)

Location of Toledo in modern Spain

The Mozarabic Office chants have some similarities to the Roman rite. For example, they also have antiphonal and responsorial singing. They also use syllabic, neumatic, and melismatic styles.

• Antiphons: These are the largest group of chants for the daily prayers (Office). Most are moderately syllabic, with simple recitations for the verses.
• Alleluiatici: These are also antiphonal chants, and their text usually includes the word "alleluia." Unlike Gregorian chant, these are sung at morning prayers (`Matins`) and evening prayers (`Vespers`) even on days when "alleluia" is usually left out.
• Missa: At Matins, there's a musical form called the `missa`. It includes an Alleluiaticus surrounded by two Antiphons and a `Responsory`. Later missae sometimes had musical ideas that connected all their parts.
• Responsories: These are mostly found at the end of a missa. They are generally neumatic, using musical patterns that fit different phrase lengths and end with a set musical ending.
• Other Office chants include:

* Matutinaria: Morning-themed chants. * Benedictiones: Using texts from the Book of Daniel. * Soni: Melismatic chants. * Laudes: Chants that include "alleluia." * Psallendi: These end with the Doxology (a short prayer of praise).

• Vespertini: These evening chants often mention lighting lamps or nightfall. They are often made by combining existing musical phrases.
• Preces: These are short, lightly neumatic prayers that rhyme and have a repeated part.
• Hymns: Many of these are found across Catholic Europe, but we don't know if the same melodies were used everywhere.

Chants for the Mass

The Mass is the Christian celebration of the Eucharist. Plainchant is important in the Mass for several reasons: to help people affirm their faith together, to expand on the Bible readings, and to accompany certain actions.

• Praelegenda: These are opening chants, similar to the Gregorian Introit. They use the same antiphonal structure and psalm tones found in the Mozarabic Office.
• Gloria in excelsis Deo: Unlike the Gregorian Gloria, the Mozarabic Gloria is only used in some local traditions.
• Trisagion: In this chant, the Greek word "hagios" (holy) is sung three times, sometimes with many notes. This is different from the Gregorian Sanctus.
• Benedictiones: After the Trisagion, these chants also come from the Book of Daniel, but they have more complex melodies.
• Psalmi: These are neumatic and melismatic responsorial chants, similar to the Gregorian Gradual. On some holidays, a Psalmo leads into a `Clamor`. During Lent, `Threni` replace Psalmi.
• Laus: Just as the Gregorian Gradual is followed by the Alleluia, the Mozarabic Psalmo is followed by the Laus. Like Gregorian Alleluias, the Laudes include two melismas on "alleluia" around a simpler verse. During Lent, the Laudes use different texts.
• Sacrificium: This chant corresponds to the Gregorian Offertory.
• Ad pacem: A few Mozarabic Masses include this special Antiphon sung for the kiss of peace.
• Ad sanctus: This chant is similar to the Gregorian Sanctus.
• Ad confractionem panis: This chant is sung when the bread is broken, similar to the Ambrosian Confractorium.
• Ad accedentes: This chant, similar to the Gregorian Communion, follows.

Recordings

You can listen to recordings of Mozarabic chant by:

• Ensemble Organum on the French label Harmonia Mundi
• The monks of Santo Domingo de Silos led by Ismael Fernández de la Cuesta on the German label Archiv Produktion.

See also

In Spanish: Canto mozárabe para niños