Search

[German Version] (Aug 19, 1865, Kürenz, near Trier – Oct 17, 1931, Fribourg), musicologist. After training with Michael Hermesdorff at the cathedral in Trier, he studied in Straßburg (Strasbourg) with Gustav Jacobsthal and in Berlin with Heinrich Bellermann and P. Spitta. In 1893 he received his habilitation from Fribourg and taught there as a lecturer; he was appointed associate professor in 1897 and full professor in 1902. In 1920/1921 he served as rector. In 1901 he founded the Gregorian Academ…

[German Version] I. Religious Studies In societies that must adapt and respond to an environment dominated by marked seasonal variations (Seasons), the rhythms of the year are fundamental to the economic and social life of the community. Each New Year festival reflects a specific social structure, which is characterized in turn by a specific perception and assessment of the natural environment. Therefore a phenomenological listing of the various religious elements of the festival does not do justice …

[German Version] I. Catholic – II. Orthodox I. Catholic 1. General Introduction and History The binding nature of its basic elements (Scripture reading, the breaking of bread [Eucharist/Communion]) notwithstanding, the liturgy was initially celebrated quite freely with improvised prayers by the presiding priest (Just. 1 Apol. 67). Later on, model texts (Hipp., Traditio Apostolica ) served as points of reference. From the 4th century onwards, the major ecclesiastical centers (Antioch, Alexandria, Rome, Jerusalem, Byzantium…

[German Version] I. Architecture – II. Liturgy and Practice I. Architecture A simple or throne-like, originally open, seat in the church as seating for the father confessor and the person making confession, the place for individual confession (Confession). Beginning in the 16th century, especially after the Council of Trent and the Instructiones of ¶ C. Borromeo, the originally simple wooden armchair underwent rich development. In general, from the early 17th century on, one finds the symmetrical three-part confessional, the central…

[German Version] I. Liturgy – II. Music I. Liturgy Historically, the German term Altargesang relates to texts that are sung only by the priest during the mass (celebrant's prayer), and in a broader sense to all sung parts of the liturgy that are led by a celebrant: collects, verses, litanies, Gospel and Epistle readings, responses between choir and congregation, blessings as well as the intoning of the Kyrie, the Gloria and the Creed. The churches of ¶ the Reformation added new compositions for the choir and the congregation. Luther's Deutsche Messe (1526) as a psalm or a hymn as I…

[German Version] I. History of the Discipline – II. Current State of Research The study of church music is a relatively new scholarly field that endeavors comprehensively to collect, investigate, interpret, transmit, and also make usable in practice our knowledge about the practical and theoretical aspects of church music. The multifaceted contexts of church music must thereby be incorporated, including liturgy and liturgical theology, similarities and differences with re…

[German Version] I. Term and Genre – II. Old Testament – III. New Testament – IV. Liturgical Studies I. Term and Genre The Greek word ὕμνος/ hýmnos, whose etymology is obscure, originally meant, quite unspecifically, simply “song” (the verb ὑμνεῖν/ hymneín, “ to sing”; cf. Hes. Theog. 11.33; Hom. Hym. 3.178, etc.). Yet, from the ¶ 5th/4th century bce at the latest, it meant “song for a god” (cf. Plato, Leges 700 b 1–2; Xenophanes 21 B 1.13 DK; Xenophon, Cyrupaideia 18.1.23) and thence became the general term for “religious song,” and finally for “festival song,” “song o…

[German Version] I. Historical Development – II. The Roman Mass – III. The Mass and Protestant Worship – IV. Music I. Historical Development The roots of the mass go back to Jewish communal meals and New Testament accounts of Jesus' table fellowship (Eucharist/Communion) with his followers from different backgrounds, including sinners and outsiders. Finally his instruction to “do this in remembrance of me” points to future consummation beyond death. The structure of remembrance ( zakar) means more than just recollection; it brings the salvation wrought through Chr…

[German Version] I. Phenomenology – II. History – III. Dogmatics – IV. Practical Theology – V. Ethics – VI. Orthodox Church – VII. Judaism – VIII. Art History – IX. Asia, Africa, Latin America I. Phenomenology The term liturgy has been used for Christian worship since the end of the 16th century; by the end of the 18th century, it had gained general acceptance. In secular usage, Gk λειτουργία/ leitourgía means work done in public service (from λαός/ laós, “people” [Laity] and ἔργον/ érgon, “work”); the LXX used it for the temple cult. It appears only 15 times in the N…