chorale
chorale
German
“Surprisingly, chorale is a choir word that moved through three languages.”
Chorale is rooted in Greek choros, a word for a chorus in drama. The Roman poet Horace used chorus in Latin in the 1st century BCE, keeping the idea of a singing group. By the 4th century CE, Latin choralis meant "of the choir." The name stays tied to communal singing.
In German, Choral appears in the 15th century for church song. Martin Luther issued the first Lutheran chorales in 1524 with Johann Walter. The word named a congregational melody in the Reformation. That musical role fixed the sense in German.
English took chorale from German in the late 18th century. Charles Burney used chorale in his 1776 history of music. The word kept a religious and communal flavor. It also spread to concert works, especially in Bach reception.
Johann Sebastian Bach wrote chorales in Leipzig from 1723 to 1750. Later editors in the 19th century labeled collections as Chorale harmonizations. The term then entered English teaching and performance culture. It became a standard label for a harmonized hymn tune.
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Today
Chorale is a harmonized hymn tune, often tied to Lutheran practice. It also names the short, chordal passages modeled on such tunes in larger works.
In everyday use it signals a simple, sturdy melody sung by many. Small voices, one line.
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