Liber Usualis
The Liber Usualis (from Latin liber 'book' and late Latin usualis 'usual, usable '; thus for example: 'book for practical use') is a Latin chorale book of generally used pieces of Gregorian chant in square notation . The approximately 1,950 page choral book contains all the chants for the ordinarium and the proprien of Holy Mass on all Sundays and public holidays of the church year , as well as chants for the prayer of the hours .
history
It was published in 1896 by monks of the French Abbaye Saint-Pierre de Solesmes and appeared until 1964 in editions that were changed or expanded almost annually.
The publication of the Liber Usualis falls in the first phase of the restitution of the Gregorian chant , which began in French monasteries in the second half of the 19th century, led to a passionate research activity and in the Motu Proprio Tra le sollecitudini Pope Pius X of It culminated on November 22nd, 1903, which designated Gregorian chant as the very own musical form of expression of the church and its liturgy and assigned it a preferred rank in church music. The Liber Usualis, published by Dom André Mocquereau (1849–1930), suffered from the start from his incorrect understanding of rhythm, according to which every note of the chorale should be sung with the same length.
The Liber Usualis is now partially outdated because, on the one hand , it does not take into account the liturgical reforms that resulted from the Second Vatican Council , and, on the other hand, because Gregorian semiology has made great strides in decoding it over the past few decades of the older neumen manuscripts , which in particular allow more differentiated knowledge of the rhythmic design of the chorales. In practice, the Liber Usualis has largely been replaced today by other chorale books such as the Graduale Romanum (1974) for the lyrics of Holy Mass and the antiphonals for the Liturgy of the Hours.
Because of the completeness of the collection, the Liber Usualis is still a sought-after collector's item today, and well-preserved antiquarian specimens fetch collector's prices. A reprint of the 1953 edition was published by a US publisher in 1997.
See also
literature
- Liber usualis missae et officii pro dominicis et festis cum cantu Gregoriano ex editione Vaticana adamussim excerpto a Solesmensibus Monachis. Desclée, Paris / Tournai 1896 ff.
- Liber usualis. With introduction and rubrics in English. Reprint of the 1953 Tounai edition. St. Bonaventure Publ., Great Falls, MT, 1997
Web links
- Liber Usualis , edition 1961 with English translations as PDF file (115 MB)
- Excerpts from the Liber Usualis , edition 1932 in modern notation as a PDF file
- Reprint of the Liber Usualis
Individual evidence
- ↑ Tra le sollecitudini , original text at vatican.va, German translation at kathpedia.com