- This article is about the musical term. See Antiphon (person) the orator of
ancient Greece.
An antiphon is a response, usually sung in Gregorian chant, to a
psalm or some other part of a religious service, such as at Vespers or at a Mass. This meaning gave rise to the antiphony style
of singing, see call and response.
The word is of Greek origin, αντί (opposite) + φωνη (voice).
A piece of music which is performed by two semi-independent choirs interacting with one
another, often singing alternate musical phrases, is known as antiphonal. In particular, antiphonal psalmody is the
singing or musical playing of psalms by alternating groups of
performers. The peculiar mirror structure of the Hebrew psalms renders it probable that the
antiphonal method originated in the services of the ancient Israelites. According to the historian Socrates, its introduction
into Christian worship was due to Ignatius of Antioch (died 117), who in a vision had seen the angels singing in alternate choirs. In the Latin Church it was not practised
until more than two centuries later, when it was introduced by Ambrose, bishop of Milan, who
compiled an antiphonary, or collection of works suitable for antiphonal singing (also
known as an antiphonal). The antiphonary still in use in the Roman Roman Catholic
Church was compiled by Gregory the Great (590).[1]
Antiphony is particularly common in the Anglican musical tradition, where the choir
divides into two equal halves on opposite sides of the quire.
Antiphons are an used as an integral part of the worship in the Greek Orthodox
church[2] and the Eastern
Catholic churches.[3]
The Indian concept sawal-jawab ("question" and
"answer") can be considered antiphonal. The alteration of individual notes or pitches is hocket.
Antiphon can also be used outside of a strict musical or liturgical context to mean a
more general response. When used in this way the word often maintains its religious
connotation.
Polychoral Antiphony
When two or more groups of singers sing in alternation the style of music can also be called polychoral. Specifically,
this term is usually applied to music of the late Renaissance and early
Baroque. Polychoral techniques are a definitive characteristic of the music of the
Venetian school, exemplified by the works of Giovanni Gabrieli; this music is often known as the Venetian polychoral style. The Venetian polychoral style was an important innovation of the
late Renaissance, and this style, with its variations as it spread across Europe after
1600, helps to define the beginning of the Baroque era. Polychoral music was not limited
to Italy in the Renaissance; it was popular in Spain and Germany, and there are examples from the
19th and 20th centuries, from composers as diverse as Hector Berlioz, Igor Stravinsky and Karlheinz Stockhausen.
The Greater Advent Antiphons
O sapientia: [1]
O Adonai: [2]
See O Antiphons
References
- Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, Oxford University Press
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