The Choral Journey

Humanity has been reaching for a unified source of expression from the beginning of time. Perhaps the concert of voices as a flock of birds calling or a den of wolves baying gave rise to a group of homo sapiens finding their voices united and, through that, expressed in community. As the heart beats sympathetically as a natural drum, so also the human voice finds natural expression beyond speech into the rising and falling of pitch and rhythms innate and not learned. This is the history and the Choral Journey through time. And as no human is born to travel alone, the discovery of a vocal home is very much an awakening to knowing what is truly shared.

In Western tradition specifically, the word "chorus"[] derives from Latin and Ancient Greek and we see in the history of Greek theater that a chorus was used to represent the understanding and/or emotions of a group as opposed to the individual. So too in music then we use a refrain (chorus) of a song in like fashion opposed to the verse or solo. In theater, a chorus can reinforce the response to the action of a play punctuated by the individual actors. So to enable the chorus to function, individuals release or surrender individual nature into one of unity. This demonstrates not only in the sounds, words or music that emanate from the voice, but also the way in which they leave and return to the silence prior and afterward. It also takes an agreement by the group that one is responsible, fundamentally, to lead or direct.

As western civilization progressed, specifically in Europe, hymns (songs) and chant became integral parts of traditional liturgy. They gave the gathered community both a unified expression and participation in the sacred. Perhaps it became obvious that this too was preceded by gatherings or celebrations of the community outside (i.e. victory songs, battle songs, birth/death songs, etc.) such that expressions of the divine needed more than a solo voice; they needed a communal one as well. Earliest tradition (misogynist) prohibited women's voices until they would no longer be denied. Granted, monastic communities of women developed alongside those of men, and each contained their traditions of singing, but public liturgical expression would be exclusively male for centuries.

Western choral music had much of its origins in the monastic tradition where there became a universal (catholic) need to share and standardize successful forms and traditions that would accurately represent the community. Though there are many forms of liturgical or religious chant (Hebrew,Celtic, Gallican, Mozarabic, Byzantine, Ambrosian, Sarum (Anglican), etc.) there came a time when under Pope Gregory I there was a codification that not only directed the specific forms and melodies to be used but also the standardization of notation. (see Gregorian Chant[]). Perhaps after centuries of enduring the changes and chances of remaining unified in pitch, some monastic abbot saw the wisdom in bringing technology inside the sacred space and the first pipe organ was installed (history recalls that Pippin the Short was the first to donate one). This organ was never used on its own but only as accompaniment to the voices and, eventually, a drone latch was invented so that one of the lower keys could be held down and the center pitch of the chant would remain steady throughout and guarantee that voices would always return to that "home" pitch no matter where they may have strayed prior.

It is not hard to posit that less gifted voices could be encouraged to remain on the drone pitch throughout and this would have been an origin of choral harmony. This is not to say that secular music expanded early on toward harmonies but without a system of written record it was impossible to maintain the tradition with any accuracy or scholarship. The drone pitch (fundamental) would then resonate in consonance (harmony) or dissonance (outside the harmonic overtone series) and create both tension and release that not only succeeds to accent text but also drive the forward motion of the music. Organum[] was the next step when the chant was matched, note for note, in another pitch below, traditionally a perfect octave or fifth because of the consonant qualities of the interval. This was the simplest expansion of the chorus and from that time to the present day we look for that traditional resolution of vocal lines as points of so called 'anchors' in music; frequently at the beginning and endings of phrases but also intermittently within. There are lots of resources about this particular form and even doctoral works of great scholarship.

Eventually, as the need to expand on old forms increased, boys voices (soprano) were added into the chorus primarily as a means of early training for eventual life in holy orders with the older brothers. This would also become a way for young males of any background or lineage to gain access to an otherwise restricted hierarchy of social norms. They could join in to add dimension and great depth to what already existed in three voice (parts) music; 1. bassus 2. tenor 3. altus (countertenor). Eventually this expansion would divide each of the four voices into higher (1) and lower (2) that as early as Thomas Tallis spread into a choral masterwork for forty voice parts, Spem in alium.Spem in alium] Today, in the 21st century, the majority of music in the canon of choral opportunities remains steadfast in four voices; SSAA, TTBB, SATB (the most common).

Whether this music stems from a spiritual (religious) context or a secular one, what remains is the expression of feelings, ideas and emotions presented in context, space and time. We attempt to reach back to a somewhat mystical understanding of the intent behind the origins of chant and through that, reach for a mind of humanity in the Middle Ages and beyond. The harmonies of American spirituals reground singers and audience alike in the realities of hope in the face of slavery. Choruses within operas, oratorios, motets, symphonies and every form of popular or common music always lean toward a common expression of humanity that can be shared and expressed more clearly when text takes flight in music. It also not only sets apart the human voice as an instrument unique to any other, as there is none that can shape tones with such infinite variety, but in reality the length of a musical phrases requires the duration that it be "singable" and not longer or extreme in range than humanly possible without the instrument.

- David Dehner, MM