Gradual

As Gradual ( Graduale actually responsory ) is called in the Roman Catholic liturgy both an intermediate vocals and a liturgical book.

Gradual in the liturgy

As Gradual Psalm sections or biblical verses from the Old Testament reading and the Epistle in the Mass are called; when the Old Testament reading is omitted, is the place of Graduales between previous and subsequent epistle Alleluia. They are presented as a soloist and a so-called responsum of the Schola (or community) framed. The name stems from the place of execution of the song (from the Latin gradus, "step" ), the steps of the altar. In practice singing this has developed into the ambo ago.

The Graduale in Gregorian chant

The Gradual is a part of the Gregorian measuring the Proper. It belongs to the genus of the responsory and originally consisted of the following parts:

• The vorgesungenen from Kantor responsum,
• The repeated by the Schola responsum,
• A solo verse (typically a Psalm verse )
• And the repetition of the Responsums by the Schola.

During the Middle Ages, but then established one of them slightly different form:

• The cantor intoned the first one or two words of the Responsums before the Schola agreed with;
• Then the cantor no longer completely sang the solo verse, because the last part of the verse was taken over by the Schola;
• Repeating the Responsums accounted for the most part.

The melody of graduals total melismenreicher and therefore more demanding in their composition than about Introit and Communio. The Solovers typically has thereby a higher range than the responsum. Not all graduals have their own melodies. Just below the graduals in the second mode, there are far-reaching similarities. In the period between Easter and Pentecost the Gradual is typically replaced by an additional Alleluia.

Polyphonic musical settings

From the 12th and 13th centuries there are numerous polyphonic settings of the solo parts of graduals; which are in this time, the first one or two words of the Responsums and the largest part of the verse. These musical settings belong to the genus of the organum, among them there are also the famous four-part Organa " Viderunt omnes " and " Sederunt principes " by Perotin. The original Gregorian melody remains in the lower voice, though. Well in long sustained notes to the draw near the livelier one to three upper voices

Even from a later period there is more harmonious settings of the Graduale texts if they withdraw their significance and behind the setting of the Ordinary of measurement. Such musical settings can conform to the shape of the motet, but also forms of concert use, there is the Gradual or Epistle Sonata, but also purely instrumental pieces in place of the Graduales. A well-known historical Gradual composition is the Locus iste by Anton Bruckner, a setting of the Gradual for the fair.

Liturgical book

The same term is also used for the chorale book in which the measurement chants of the Proper Mass - Introit, Gradual, Hallelujaruf, Tract, Sequence, Offertory and Communion - are recorded. In addition, the Graduale contains the Ordinary and other songs such as All Saints, hymns and processional chants.

Chants for the Ordinary are also summarized in a separate book, the Kyriale.

From the early Middle Ages some Graduale manuscripts are preserved with neumes; they are among the most important testimonies to the study of Gregorian chant. These early manuscripts still had a rather small format; late medieval Graduale manuscripts, however, are often very large books, as they are intended, that is to sing a larger group of singers from them. The contents of the Graduale manuscripts was especially often united in the late Middle Ages, together with the texts of the Mass in the Missal, but you continued to write separate graduals even after the invention of printing for a long time by hand.