THE SYMBIOSIS BETWEEN MICROTONALITY AND SPRECHGESANG IN PSALM 124 BY ION COŢOFAN

Abstract

“Psalm 124” by Ion Coţofan is an example of a choral work with religious text designed for a concert hall and not a liturgical service, a sample of the perfect combination between text and the music accompanying it. In the case of this work, one cannot speak of a well-defined melody, but rather of a general dramaturgy making a subtle shift from diatonicism, through chromaticism, towards ultra-chromaticism. The continuous pendulation between polyphony and heterophony, as well as the permanent oscillation between “sprechgesang” and microtonality give birth to a musical work full of tension and drama.

Keywords

• polyphony, heterophony, sprechgesang, microtonality.