Scholarly record

THE PSALMS OF DAVID – TEXTUAL CONSENSUS IN THE MUSIC OF THE 20TH CENTURY

P. M. Coroiu, A. Belibou

Abstract

The research we propose starts from the premise that the classical music composers of the 20th century turned to religious texts written almost 3 millennia ago, and they rediscovered their essences in spite of the social, territorial, linguistic, and religious changes that took place throughout history. Despite the different musical composition techniques used or the origin of the composers, the subject of David’s Psalms is embodied in the work of some of the most prolific creators of the last century (Arnold Schoenberg, Igor Stravinsky, Henryk Mikolaj Górecki, Benjamin Britten, Arvo Pärt, Leonard Bernstein, Max Reger, Lili Boulanger, Arthur Honegger). Analyzing the music scores of those who approached the psaltic writings (with a focus on the differences in the musical treatment of the religious texts) and observing the context in which some creations came into existence, our research intends to answer the question: Why did 20th century man chose to communicate with and about the divinity through consecrated words and expressions? Our focus is on the existence of “homo religiosus” that chooses to express his spirituality through music. Another interesting point in our paper is the study of unity in diversity: although the texts are the same, the music and the hermeneutic approach are different. The textual consensus given by the psaltic texts in the 20th century music is proof that modern man has not desecrated but just reinterpreted the sacred. Prophetic and missionary, the cultural-spiritual discovery is a personal act; the artist deepens and transfigures the world in a subjective manner, starting from the same religious realities as the contemporary man.

Publication Impact Profile

No metrics available.

PLUMX see details

DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/SGEMSOCIAL2017/HB61/S16.62

Publication details

Back to publication list