Against Gregorian

In Anglican England in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, there was considerable opposition to the Roman Catholic Gregorian chant.  The Parish Choir or Church Music Book, published by the Society for the Promoting of Church Music (October 1847), applauds those who “deal heavy blows at Romanism and every other form of dissent.” (1)  Part of this stems from the division of the religious denominations, but it also extends to musical taste.  The west was no longer accustomed to the key structure (modes) of Gregorian chant.  

Although the debate was no doubt heated at the time, some of the accounts appear somewhat humorous today.  William Spark recalled how his friend Henry Smart dismissed his “Gregorian-supporting” neighbour at a dinner party in Leeds:

“I am strongly of the opinion, Mr Smart, that there is a fine ecclesiastical, devotional character about Gregorian tones which no other church music possesses.”  Smart pushed back his chair, and with a significant gesture said: “Now, look here, sir, this won’t do.  Who asked your opinion upon a musical question of which you know absolutely nothing?  You may rely on it, that some day when you and your friends shouting those ugly Gregorian chants, Heaven will punish you, and rain down bags of crotchets on your heads, and prevent you from ever singing them again!” (2)

Even Samuel Wesley made a somewhat bizarre reply to a student with an interest in Gregorian music, as recounted in the Musical Times:

He [Wesley] had a rooted dislike to “Gregorians.”  Writing in 1849, on the subject of a revival of English church music, he said: “Some would reject all Music but the unisonous Chants of a period of absolute barbarism – which they term “Gregorian”.  All is “Gregorian” that is in the black diamond note!  These men would look a Michael Angelo in the face and tell him Stonehenge was the perfection of architecture!  To a pupil who had leanings towards Plainsong, he wrote: “Your question about Gregorian tones has caused me much pain,.  I thought I had made a better musician of you, I am sorry for this.  I beg to assure you that I am a musician, a protestant, and yours truly, S. S. Wesley.” (3)


(1) Cited in: Scholes, Peer (1947) The Mirror of Music: 1844-1944. London: Novello, vol. ii, p.555.
(2) The Musical Times, May 1902. Cited in: ibid, p. 554.
(3) The Musical Times, July 1900. Cited in ibid.

Posted

in

by

Greg

Tags:

, , , ,

Featured Content

Bach’s method of keyboard teaching
The teaching methods of Johann Sebastion Bach are recounted by his son, Philip Emanuel Bach: The first thing he did was to teach his pupils his special ways of touching the keyboard. For this he made them practice for months nothing but separate exercises for all the fingers of both hands, with constant attention to […]
The inexpressible depth of music
The inexpressible depth of all music, by virtue of which it floats past us as a paradise quite familiar and yet eternally remote, and is so easy to understand and yet so inexplicable, is due to the fact that it reproduces all the emotions of our innermost being, but entirely without reality and remote from […]
Paper and matches for maintenance
When Spanish cellist Pablo Casals was in his seventies, he retired from the concert stage and lived in Prades, Southern France. Casals began each day by playing from Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier on the piano (1), then heading out for a walk with his German shepherd, cocking an ear for birdsong and saluting the snow-capped peak […]
Lullaby
Title: Lullaby Composer: Greg Smith Performer: Greg Smith Instrumentation: Piano Product medium: MP3 recording     Related products:     – Lullaby (PDF score) SAMPLE:
Arthur Rubinstein’s youthful practice habits
Interviewer: So many children hate to take music lessons. Can you understand this? Rubinstein: Oh, yes, I was one of them. You see, music lessons mean always this horrible dictatorial attitude of the professors. They slap four fingers and aarh; they shout at you: “Can’t you learn that? You must practice scales!” I mean, it […]
The mannerisms of Pachmann
The Russian pianist, Vladimir von Pachmann was known for his funny mannerisms: Everyone knows that the Russian pianist has funny ways of his own, which the public tolerate for the pleasure he affords them as an artist. On this occasion, we read, he remarked, first of all, “Too few people; I cannot play. This is […]
Ravel on Debussy
In a lecture in 1928 in Houston, Texas, Ravel described the differences between Debussy and his approach to composition: For Debussy the musician and the man I have had profound admiration, but by nature I am different from him. Although he may not be quite a stranger from my own personal heritage, I would at […]
Attaining great heights
“The heights by great men reached and kept were not attained by sudden flight, but they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night.” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Ladder of St. Augustine
The demise of the music critic
“…Moon, a 20-year veteran of the Philadelphia Inquirer before he left to write his new book, “1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die,” believes the biggest difference between old reviews and reviews now is that in the past, the critic’s job was to give readers a deeper sense of the work. But blogs’ rise has […]
Piano Method