How does the Gregorian Chant: Alleluia have rhythm, harmony,melody,texture,and color?
Gregorian chant is/was a monophonic (single line melody) hence the name plainsong and performed usually without accompaniment. Plainsong rhythm was determined by the poetic flow and syllabic structure of the ecclesiastical Latin prose. Since it was a single melodic line there was no harmony although it was probably sometimes accompanied by an instrument or two. Again, since it was monophonic there was no texture as such although the sparse melody did create a certain mystic quality in the large open cathedrals of that time. The color would have been that of the voices performing. Around 850 the beginnings of harmony called organum appeared . This was the practice of singing the melody in parallel fourths and fifths. Hope this helped. Musician,composer,director.
