Melisma

Melisma

Melisma, in music, is the singing of a single syllable of text while moving between several different notes in succession. Music sung in this style is referred to as melismatic, as opposed to syllabic, where each syllable of text is matched to a single note.

Contents

History

Music of ancient cultures used melismatic techniques to induce a hypnotic trance in the listener, useful for early mystical initiation rites (such as Eleusinian Mysteries) and religious worship. This complex quality is still found most famously in Arabic music where the scale is said to consist of "quarter tones". Orthodox Christian chanting also bears a slight resemblance to this. Middle Eastern melismatic music was developed further in the Torah chanting as well as by the Masoretes in the 7th or 8th century. It then appeared in some genres of Gregorian chant where it was used in certain sections of the Mass, with the earliest written appearance around AD 900. The gradual and the alleluia, in particular, were characteristically melismatic, for example, while the tract is not, and repetitive melodic patterns were deliberately avoided in the style. The Byzantine Rite also used melismatic elements in its music, which developed roughly concurrently to the Gregorian chant.

In Western music, the term melisma most commonly refers to Gregorian chant. (The first definition of melisma by the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary[1] is "a group of notes or tones sung on one syllable in plainsong".) However, the term melisma may be used to describe music of any genre, including baroque singing and later gospel. Within Jewish liturgical tradition, melisma is still commonly used in the chanting of Torah, readings from the Prophets, and in the body of the service itself. For an examination of the evolution of this tradition, see Idelsohn.

Today, melisma is commonly used in Arab, Middle Eastern, African, Balkan, and African American music, Portuguese Fado, Spanish Flamenco, and various Asian folk and popular musical genres. Melisma is also commonly featured in Western popular music and is utilized by countless pop artists, although this form usually involves improvising melismas (and melismatic vocalise) over a simpler melody. The melisma is a common feature of Stevie Wonder's music; the trend in R&B singers is considered to have been popularized by Mariah Carey's "Vision of Love".[2][3][4] In recent years, there has been increased criticism of melisma being abused by singers, in part due to the popularity of shows such as American Idol and the trend of contestants imitating the artists who popularized the technique.[5]

Examples

The French carol tune "Gloria" arranged by Edward Shippen Barnes in 1937, to which the hymn "Angels We Have Heard on High" is usually sung, contains one of the most melismatic sequences in popular Christian hymn music, on the "o" of the word "Gloria". The choral work "For Unto Us a Child Is Born" from Handel's Messiah (Part I, No. 12) contains numerous examples of melisma, as in the following excerpt. The soprano and alto lines engage in a 57-note melisma on the word "born."

Handel Messiah - For Unto Us a Child is Born excerpt.JPG

See also

References

External links


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • melismă — MELÍSMĂ, melisme, s.f. (muz.) Ornament muzical rezultat din repartiţia unei durate lungi într un grup de note de valoare scurtă. – Din it. melisma, fr. mélisme. Trimis de LauraGellner, 27.05.2004. Sursa: DEX 98  melísmă s. f., pl. melísme Trimis …   Dicționar Român

  • melisma — 1837, from Gk. melisma a song, an air, a tune, melody, from melos music, song, melody; musical phrase or member, lit. limb, from PIE *mel a limb. Related: Melismatic …   Etymology dictionary

  • Melisma — Me*lis ma, n.; pl. {Melismata}. [NL., fr. Gr. me lisma a song.] (Mus.) (a) A piece of melody; a song or tune, as opposed to {recitative} or musical declamation. (b) A grace or embellishment. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Melisma — (gr.), 1) jede Verzierung einer Hauptnote durch durchgehende u. Wechselnoten, woraus die sogenannten Satzmanieren entstehen; 2) jede Sylbe bei Gesangstücken, worauf mehre Noten gesungen werden, zum Unterschied des blos syllabischen Gesanges, wo… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Melisma — (griech.), soviel wie melodische Verzierung, Koloratur …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Melisma — (grch.), melodische Verzierung, Koloratur; beim melismātischen Gesang kommen mehrere Noten auf einen Vokal, im Gegensatz zum syllabischen, bei dem nur eine auf jede Textsilbe kommt …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • melisma — (Del gr. μέλισμα, canto). 1. m. Mús. Canción o melodía breve. 2. Mús. Grupo de notas sucesivas que forman un neuma o adorno sobre una misma vocal …   Diccionario de la lengua española

  • melisma — [mə liz′mə] n. pl. melismata [mə liz′mə tə] or melismas [Gr, song < melizein, to sing, modulate < melos, song: see MELIC] a succession of different notes sung upon a single syllable, as orig. in plainsong or, now especially, in the… …   English World dictionary

  • Melisma — La obra El Mesías, de Haendel, contiene numerosos ejemplos de melisma, como estas 57 notas en la palabra monosílaba born En música, melisma (del griego, μέλισμα, “canto”) es la técnica de cambiar la altura de una sílaba musical mientras es… …   Wikipedia Español

  • Melisma — Das Melisma (von griech.: melos Lied, Weise, Gesang) bezeichnet eine Tonfolge oder Melodie, die auf einer Silbe gesungen wird.[1] Beim melismatischen Gesang kommen im Gegensatz zur Syllabik, bei der jeder Note nur eine Silbe zugeordnet ist,… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”