Music in the reformed Churches
Song, only song, but a song of assembly
Song of faithful, monodic and have cappella: “the voice of the man is much more excellent than all the musical instruments which are dead things” (Calvin) The faithful ones delegate neither to an instrumentalist, nor with a cantor the care to rent or request God by the music.
All the assembly sings and sings all: therefore the protesting canticle (reformed psalm or choral Lutheran) is without refrain (whereas the catholic canticle with refrain or in Répons, heir to the tradition ambrosienne, makes it possible to alternate officiating or cantor and assembly).
Psalms
With the difference of the Lutherans (canticles and Choral S) reformed sang during three centuries only the Psaume S, and some rare Cantique S borrowed from the writings (Décalogue, canticle of Brace, canticle of Siméon and Cantique of Marie). Psautier (containing the entirety of the 150 Psalms adapted by Clement Marot and Theodore de Bèze) was very a long time the only collection of songs used in the reformed churches (Psautier of Geneva). The song, they are initially words, understandable (in the vernacular language), and the melody is with the service of these words (not of Mélisme S, a melody easy to retain and sing, a syllable by note, a Ambitus not exceeding the octave).
The psalm was sung in entirety (including the psalm 119, longest) and without slowness, in unison (the harmonizations with several voices “notes against note” or in counterpoint flowered being reserved for the song at the house). The Chantre had as a function, not to sing in alternation with the assembly, but of entonner and to make hear the melody so that all the assembly can memorize it.
From where the absence of organ in the French and Swiss temples reformed until the middle of the XVIIIe century (Calvin qualified this instrument of “bagpipe of the devil”) The only country calvinist which made exception to this musical austerity was the Netherlands where organ was present in the reformed churches.
Psalms and canticles, Organ S and Harmonium
The romanticism inserted the music in the temples, the “Alarm clock” introduced the canticles there: an abundant hymnology was born at the XIXe century, not of the best musical taste, but on involving melodies. The churches of campaigns obtained Harmonium S to replace the cantors, but the difficulty to play highly often caused the loss of flavor of the song of assembly.
Today
The illustrated music was integrated into the worship (cf Culte protesting), in the form of organ stops at the beginning of the worship, after preaching, during the collection, and at the exit. The music leads in the meditation, the personal prayer. But the song of assembly took a larger part in the liturgy: use of let us répons called spontaneous songs (same each Sunday of the same liturgical time), canticles resulting from different Protestant traditions (chorals Lutherans, songs of the Alarm clock, songs of evangelic churches) and contained in repertories common to several churches (“Praises and Prayers” in 1938, which succeeded “Our Hearts Sing You” in 1977, repertories common to all the churches of FPF (Protestant federation of France); or other collections, local initiatives, also integrating many catholic songs). One conceives the difficulty in composing today of original works and good invoice, easily chantables by an assembly whose members have tastes and cultures musical different.
Two psautiers are available today in bookstore: the “French Psautier” published by the music Federation and song, and the “Pseaumes de David, put in Francoise rhyme by Clement Marot and Theodore de Bèze” revised by Marc-François Gonin.
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