- Part song
A part song (or part-song) is a form of
choral music which consists of asecular song which has been written or arranged for several vocal parts. Usually the arrangement is homophonic, with the highest part carries the melody with the other voices supplying the accompanying harmonies, rather than one which iscontrapuntal like a madrigal. They are often sung unaccompanied. Arrangements may be forSATB choir, or for an all-male or all-female ensemble.cite book|last=Baker|title=A Dictionary of Musical Terms|publisher=Read Books|date=2007|isbn=140676292X|accessdate=2008-09-13]The original text and melody often originate in traditional
folk song ; in the British choral repertoire, composers have often drawn on the rich folk traditions of the Scotland, England, Wales and Ireland, arranging traditional melodies for choir in a contemporary style.Composers and works
Franz Schubert ,Robert Schumann andFelix Mendelssohn all contributed to the genre, but the part song gained popularity in Britain in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries with the growth of choral societies.cite book|last=Russell|first=Dave|title=Popular Music in England, 1840-1914|publisher=McGill-Queen's Press|date=1987|pages=217-8|isbn=0773505415|accessdate=2008-09-13] Works by composers such asRalph Vaughan Williams ,Gustav Holst ,Edward Elgar ,Benjamin Britten ,Arnold Bax andPeter Warlock are typical examples of the part-song repertoire.Examples
*"
Lay a garland " - Pearsall
*"Three Shakespeare Songs " - text byWilliam Shakespeare , set to music by Vaughan Williams
*"Loch Lomond" - traditional Scottish, arr. Vaughan Williams
*"Greensleeves " - traditional English, arr. Vaughan Williams
* "I Love my Love " - traditional English, arr. HolstReferences
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