Clivis
Two-note neume with descending movement.
What it means
The clivis is one of the basic signs of neume notation: a sign for two notes on one syllable, of which the second lies lower than the first. It thus belongs to the two-note neumes and forms the counterpart to the ascending two-note group. A neume sign always stands for one syllable of the text — the number of notes in it can range from one to several.
In the notation
The clivis is written as one connected stroke that first leads upward and then bends downward; in the square notation of later manuscripts it appears as two squares standing one above the other, joined by a vertical stroke, the upper note being sung first. This reading direction is the most common beginner's mistake: with multi-note neumes in square notation, reading does not run from left to right throughout but, where noteheads stand one above the other, from top to bottom. Early neumes without a staff indicate only the direction of the movement, not its exact size; only with the staff do the intervals become unambiguous.
Musical use
The clivis has its place in monophonic liturgical chant, where it is among the most frequent signs of all. It appears on syllables that do not get by with a single note — at the end of phrases, on stressed syllables, in cadence formation before the finalis. In the oldest manuscripts the signs carry additional strokes and letters that contain information about performance and tempo; their interpretation is the subject of semiology.
In square notation the clivis appears as two connected squares, of which the upper stands on the left; the descending stroke shows the direction.
Performance practice
Sing a clivis as one movement and not as two separate notes: the weight lies on the first, the second is connected and rounded off. Resist the inclination to emphasize the second note — it carries the syllable to its end. When reading from square notation, take the two notes of the clivis deliberately in their order — first the higher, then the lower — until it sits securely; the ascending two-note group, the pes, is read the other way round, from bottom to top.