(Ger. Choralmotette).
A polyphonic vocal composition in two or more parts based on a German chorale. During the 16th century the chorale motet was the leading form of chorale composition; although it could be performed a cappella, instruments were frequently used either to reinforce or to replace one or more vocal parts. At first the chorale melody was usually treated as a rather clearly differentiated cantus firmus, but towards the end of the 16th century and into the early 17th each line of the chorale was normally presented in fugal imitation. After its eclipse by the chorale concerto and the chorale cantata in the 17th and 18th centuries, the a cappella chorale motet experienced a significant revival in the late 19th century and in the 20th.
See Chorale settings.
ROBERT L. MARSHALL