Monophony |

monophony – one of the main ways of presentation in music, characterized by the limitation of one melodic. line. Under the conditions of O., the concept of music. prod. as a whole is identical to the concept of melody. The concepts of “O.” are very close, in many respects and identical. and monody; their ch. the difference is that the term “O.” emphasizes rather the textural side of the phenomenon, and “monody” – the structural one.

O. – the simplest and therefore the primary way of presenting the muses. thoughts. Main O.’s difference from polyphony is that one melodic. the line must contain the totality of the means of music. O.’s advantage – in the possibility of complete expression of thought through only one melody. The reverse side of the same specifics of O. expresses inapplicability. means valid only for the consonance of several. voices, and the associated limitation of the sphere of music. content. True, through the so-called. hidden polyphony (“hidden polyphony”) in O., you can achieve the effect of polyphony. full-sound (J.S. Bach, suites for cello solo), however, such a projection of polyphony onto a monophonic line always gives only partial compensation; besides art. the effect is borrowed from other music. warehouse, to-rum O. here, thus, imitates. Developed prof. culture refers to O. (in its own sense) in small forms or to achieve special colors of expression (Lyubasha’s song “Equip it quickly, dear mother” from the 1st day of the “Tsar’s Bride”, the sailor’s song at the beginning of the 1st day “Tristan and Isolde”). Of particular importance is O. in prof. music of the countries of the East (including Soviet; an example is the Tajik Shashmakom – see Poppy) and other non-European. cultures where O.’s development is direct. continuation of ancient traditions. O. is common in the folklore of all peoples. Close to O. existing forms of works of modern. song and dance mass genres (however, in the final analysis, this is still not O., but polyphony, homophony).

Historically, among all peoples, O. forms the first stage in the development of a high professional. music cultures (in Western European music – Gregorian chant, secular music of the Middle Ages; Russian Znamenny chant and other types of monody). As the formation of many-goal. O. forms and genres are pushed into the background and cease to exist as independent. branch of the lawsuit. G. de Machaux was the last of the well-known composers who wrote in the one-headed genre. music (separate “islands” of O. are also found later, for example, the songs of G. Sachs). The revival of O., already on a new basis, in the conditions of rethinking the classic. modes of the major-minor tonal system, carried out in the music of the 20th century. (C. Debussy, “Syrinx” for flute solo, 1912; I. F. Stravinsky, Three pieces for solo clarinet, 1919; T. Olah, Sonata for solo clarinet, 1963).

References: see under the articles Melody, Monodia.

Yu. N. Kholopov