View source for Antiphon

{{Short description|Short chant in Christian ritual}}
{{About|the musical term}}
[[File:Liber Responsorialis 1895 p054.jpg|The ''Liber responsorialis'', showing on the right-hand page the antiphons for the first [[Matins|night office]] of Christmas. The associated [[psalm tone]]s are indicated by number and ending pitch, and the pitches for the ending of the [[doxology]] are indicated by the mnemonic ''[[Euouae]]''.|thumb]]

An '''antiphon''' ([[Greek language|Greek]] ἀντίφωνον, ἀντί "opposite" and φωνή "voice") is a short [[chant]] in [[Christianity|Christian]] [[ritual]], sung as a [[refrain]]. The texts of antiphons are usually taken from the [[Psalms]] or Scripture, but may also be freely composed. Their form was favored by [[St. Ambrose]] and they feature prominently in [[Ambrosian chant]], but they are used widely in [[Gregorian chant]] as well. They may be used during Mass, for the [[Introit]], the [[Offertory]] or the [[Mass (liturgy)#Communion rite|Communion]]. They may also be used in the [[Liturgy of the Hours]], typically for [[Lauds]] or [[Vespers]].

They should not be confused with [[Hymns to Mary#Marian antiphons|Marian antiphons]] or [[processional antiphon]]s.

When a chant consists of alternating [[Verse (music)|verses]] (usually sung by a cantor) and [[Response (liturgy)|responses]] (usually sung by the congregation), a refrain is needed.

The looser term '''antiphony''' is generally used for any [[call and response (music)|call and response]] style of singing, such as the [[kirtan]] or the [[sea shanty]] and other work songs, and songs and worship in African and African-American culture. '''Antiphonal music''' is that performed by two choirs in interaction, often singing alternate musical phrases.<ref>E. Foley and M. Paul, ''Worship music: a concise dictionary'' (Liturgical Press, 2000), p. 18.</ref> ''Antiphonal psalmody'' is the [[singing]] or musical playing of [[psalm]]s by alternating groups of performers.<ref>J. McKinnon, ''Music in early Christian literature'' ([[Cambridge University Press]], 1989), p. 10.</ref> The term "antiphony" can also refer to a choir-book containing antiphons.

== Origins ==

The chant of early Christianity through to the end of the 5th century had its root in the [[synagogue]], whence early Christians borrowed the traditions of the chanting of psalms, singing of [[hymn]]s and [[Hebrew cantillation|cantillation]]. There is some evidence from [[Acts of the Apostles]] that early Christians stayed close to contemporary Jewish traditions. For example, Acts 2:46–47 states that "with one accord in the Temple, and breaking bread from house to house did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and having favour with all the people".<ref name=wellesz>{{cite book |last1=Wellesz |first1=Egon |title=New Oxford History of Music Vol II: Early Medieval Music up to 1300 |date=1954 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-316310-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RmIYxgEACAAJ |access-date=9 August 2019}}</ref> [[Socrates of Constantinople]] wrote that antiphony was introduced into [[Christianity|Christian]] worship by [[Ignatius of Antioch]] (died 107) after he saw a vision of two choirs of angels.<ref>A.C. Zenos, ed., 'The Ecclesiastical History of Socrates Scholasticus,' book VI, chapter VIII, vol 2, p 144. In ''A Select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church'', Second Series, P. Schaff and H. Wace, eds (Grand Rapids: W. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1957).</ref> Antiphonal singing was an element of [[Jewish liturgy]] believed to have entered the monasteries of Syria and Palestine in the 4th century from the Jewish communities such as the one in [[Antioch]].<ref name=wellesz />

Antiphons have remained an integral part of the worship in the [[Byzantine Rite|Byzantine]] and [[Armenian Rite]].<ref>{{Cite CE1913|wstitle=Antiphon (in Greek Liturgy)}}</ref> The practice did not become part of the [[Latin Church]] until more than two centuries later. [[Ambrose]] and [[Gregory the Great]], who are known for their contributions to the formulation of Gregorian chant, are credited with '[[antiphonary|antiphonaries]]', collections of works suitable for antiphon, which are still used in the [[Catholic Church]] today.<ref>[[Geoffrey Wainwright|G. Wainwright]], K. B. W. Tucker. ''[[The Oxford History of Christian Worship]]'' ([[Oxford University Press]], 2006), p. 244.</ref>

== Polyphonic votive antiphons ==

[[Polyphony|Polyphonic]] [[Hymns to Mary#Marian antiphons|Marian antiphons]] in the [[Tudor votive style]] emerged in England in the 14th century as settings of texts honouring the [[Virgin Mary]], which were sung separately from the [[Mass (liturgy)|mass]] and [[Liturgy of the Hours|office]], often after [[Compline]].<ref name="W. Baxter Robison 2002 p. 363">R. H. Fritze and W. Baxter Robison, ''Historical Dictionary of Late Medieval England, 1272–1485'' (Greenwood, 2002), p. 363.</ref> Towards the end of the 15th century, [[English people|English]] [[composer]]s produced expanded settings up to nine [[Part (music)|parts]], with increasing complexity and [[vocal range]].<ref name="W. Baxter Robison 2002 p. 363" /> The largest collection of such antiphons is the late-15th-century ''[[Eton Choirbook]]''.<ref>H. Benham, ''John Taverner: His Life and Music'' (Ashgate, Aldershot, 2003), pp. 48–9.</ref> As a result, antiphony remains particularly common in the [[Anglicanism|Anglican]] musical tradition: the singers often face each other, placed in the [[Choir (architecture)|quire's]] ''[[Decani]]'' and ''[[Cantoris]]''.<ref>R. Bray, 'England i, 1485–1600' in J. Haar, ''European Music, 1520–1640'' (Boydell, 2006), p. 498.</ref>

== Greater Advent antiphons ==

{{Main|O Antiphons}}
[[Image:Meister der Braunschweig-Magdeburger Schule 001.jpg|thumb|120px|right|The [[Annunciation]]]]
The Greater Advent or O Antiphons are antiphons used at daily [[prayer]] in the evenings of the last days of [[Advent]] in various [[Christian liturgy|liturgical]] [[Christianity|Christian]] traditions.<ref>A. Nocent and M. J. O'Connell, ''The Liturgical Year'' (Liturgical Press, 1977), p. 162.</ref> Each antiphon is a name of [[Jesus|Christ]], one of his attributes mentioned in Scripture. In the [[Roman Catholic]] tradition, they are sung as antiphons to the [[Magnificat]] in [[Vespers]] from December 17 to December 23.<ref>A. Nocent and M. J. O'Connell (1977), ''Liturgical Year'', pp. 163-80.</ref> In the [[Church of England]] they have traditionally been used as antiphons to the Magnificat at [[Evening Prayer (Anglican)|Evening Prayer]].<ref>J. H. Blunt, ''The Annotated Book of Common Prayer: Being an Historical, Ritual, and Theological Commentary on the Devotional System of the Church of England'' (Rivingtons, 1866), p. 76.</ref> More recently they have found a place in primary liturgical documents throughout the Anglican Communion, including the [[Church of England]]'s ''[[Common Worship]]'' [[Christian liturgy|liturgy]]. Use of the O Antiphons was preserved in [[Lutheranism]] at the [[Protestant Reformation|German Reformation]], and they continue to be sung in Lutheran churches.<ref>C. B. Brown, ''Singing the Gospel: Lutheran Hymns and the Success of the Reformation'' ([[Harvard University Press]], 2005), p. 61.</ref>

== 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 music|Renaissance]] and early [[Baroque music|Baroque]] periods. Polychoral techniques are a definitive characteristic of the music of the [[Venetian School (music)|Venetian school]], exemplified by the works of [[Giovanni Gabrieli]]: this music is often known as the [[Venetian polychoral style]].<ref>C. Parrish, ''A Treasury of Early Music: Masterworks of the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and the Baroque Era'' (Courier Dover Publications, 2000), p. 138.</ref> The Venetian polychoral style was an important innovation of the late [[Renaissance music|Renaissance]]. This style, with its variations as it spread across Europe after 1600, helped to define the beginning of the [[Baroque music|Baroque]] era. Polychoral music was not limited to [[Italy]] in the Renaissance; it was also popular in France with [[Marc-Antoine Charpentier]] (37 settings H.16–H.52), in [[Spain]] and [[Germany]]. There are examples from the 19th and 20th centuries, from composers as diverse as [[Hector Berlioz]], [[Igor Stravinsky]], [[Béla Bartók]], and [[Karlheinz Stockhausen]].<ref>''Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians,'' Oxford University Press.</ref>

== See also ==

*[[Marian antiphon]]
*[[Anthem]]
*[[Polyphony]]
*{{C|Polyphonic form}}
*{{C|Polyphonic singing}}
*{{C|Polychoral compositions}}
*[[List of compositions by George Frideric Handel#Latin church music|Latin church music by George Frideric Handel]] — ''includes three antiphons''.

== References ==

{{Reflist|2}}

== External links ==
{{Sister project links|auto=1|wikt=antiphon}}
* {{Audio|Liber Usualis 0340a.mid|Antiphon "O Sapientia quae ex ore Altissimi..."}}
* {{Audio|Liber Usualis 0340b.mid|Antiphon O Adonai II Great Advent Antiphon}}
* {{File:Schola Gregoriana-Antiphona et Magnificat.ogg|the [[Magnificat]] sung to tone VII with an unidentified antiphon.}}

{{Medieval music}}
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[[Category:Musical forms]]
[[Category:Musical techniques]]
[[Category:Polychoral compositions|.]]
[[Category:Polyphonic form]]
[[Category:Polyphonic singing|.]]
[[Category:Medieval music genres]]
[[Category:16th-century music genres]]
[[Category:Church music]]
[[Category:Choral music genres]]