800-899Western Church / Europe

Gregorian chant

Also known as Gregorian chant, plainchant, plainsong

A spare, devotional vocal tradition rooted in the medieval Latin liturgy, with a history that is partly documented and partly wrapped in later legend.

Origins and context

A Latin-liturgical repertory preserved and developed in cathedral and monastic worship, with early written sources appearing in the 9th century and later tradition associating the chant with St. Gregory I.

Western ChurchEurope

The sound

Rhythm: Free or flexible meter

History

Gregorian chant is the best-known form of Western plainchant, tied to the medieval Latin liturgy and the long life of the Roman Catholic Church’s sung worship. Standard histories place the first surviving written sources in the 9th century, while later tradition linked the repertory to Pope Gregory I; modern scholarship is more cautious about how much of the corpus can really be traced to him. The chant corpus grew inside cathedral and monastic settings, where it supported psalms, readings, and liturgical prayers. Over time it helped shape Western musical thought, especially notation and polyphony, even as the chant itself remained a model of restraint and clarity. The Second Vatican Council still described Gregorian chant as specially suited to the Roman liturgy. (press.vatican.va)

Notable artists