Melodic restitution

Melodic Restitution is the process of restoring the original melody specifically used in relation to Gregorian Chant. All mainstream editions of Chantbooks (Vatican, Solesmes) are known to contain a large number of errors on the melodic plane. Within and without Solesmes many comparative studies have been undertaken in which related groups of the earlier rhythmic unheightened neumatic manuscriots are set in large tables of comparison which is juxtaposed with a similar table of later melodic linear notations. Parallel to these comparative studies, much research has been done in the field of modality notable by Dom. Jean Claire. As a result of these researches, it has been shown that the third and eight mode have had their dominants raised from b to c. Mode III is E authentic, dominant a fifth above is B, which in many chants is raised to C in official editions. Not only are many chants in mode III and VIII in need of melodic restitution, in all other modes errors of various nature occur. The Munsterschwarzach-Group (who also publish the Beiträge zur Gregorianik) have been issuing their own melodic restitutions. Whereas a part of the researchers is hoping to establish an Urtext edition, others have given this up as unrealistic and prefer not to mix manuscripts in to 'editorial soup' but to respect them as local variants in their own right.

Though much has been published concerning melodic restitution in academic circles, not very much of this has siphoned into the larger puddle of chant performance practice and remains mostly specialist's terrain.