In the Middle Ages, music was used in worship above all, and it constituted an integral part of the liturgy. The Mass and the Divine Office were hardly conceivable without the singing of plainchant. Known more commonly as "Gregorian" chant, this style of liturgical music developed during the Carolingian Renaissance as the fusion of Gallican and Roman traditions. In the ninth century plainchant became associated with St. Gregory the Great (pope from 590 to 604), but this connection was merely a pious legend used to justify the innovation. Plainchant continued to evolve after the time of Charlemagne; it did not receive its familiar form of square notation until the 13th century. Its melodies number in the tens of thousands.

Gradual

Graduals were books containing the music for the Mass. They were often very large, so that several members of the choir could gather around a single copy. Since new compositions of plainchant appeared constantly, old graduals were often scrapped and their parchment recycled when they became antiquated. The item on display is all that remains of one of these books. The music on the two pages is discontinuous because four leaves from the center of the quire have been lost. The lost leaves may have contained lavish artwork, as graduals often did, and are likely to have been thrown away after they were mutilated. The exhibit case at the end of the hall contains examples of artwork removed from graduals.

Not all graduals were immense tomes. This book was designed for the use of an individual, or it could have been shared between two people. Graduals provided music for all seasons of the year. The pages on display present the music for Christmas.

Acquired in 1877 by A.D. White.

Antiphonal