Anglican Chant
ANGLICAN CHANT is a way of singing unmetrical words - i.e. anything that is not rhythmic verse, from a Psalm to the telephone directory - to simple harmony. It is an exceptionally ingenious and easy-to-learn convention that has its roots in the Sarum Chant of the pre-reformation English Church, and has no parallel anywhere else.
On this page, you will find a short introduction to singing Anglican Chant. Chants have been scattered in various places across this site, as a simple way for people sitting alone at a computer to engage directly with the texts in music if they so wish.
The principles involved are quite straightfoward, and all that is really needed is a little practice. Once mastered, Anglican Chant can be sung by one person or many, in unison or in harmony, with or without an organ accompaniment, by singers of any level of proficiency. It works with more or less any text, and in any service, and there are literally hundreds of chants, providing endless variety. You can, of course, also compose your own with minimum musical knowledge.
A Single Chant: Tonus Peregrinus
Begin with a simple but very beautiful and poignant chant, the ancient Tonus Peregrinus. It is traditionally sung to Psalm 114 In exitu Israel, "When Israel came out of Egypt".
Study Psalm 114 in Anglican Chant
A Double Chant
Begin with a simple but very beautiful and poignant chant, the ancient Tonus Peregrinus. It is traditionally sung to Psalm 114 In exitu Israel, "When Israel came out of Egypt".
Study Psalm 114 in Anglican Chant
More Anglican Chant
There's more to come on this! I hope this is helpful as a beginning, though.
