Gradual
Chant of the Mass after the reading; also the book of Mass chants.
What it means
The gradual is first of all a chant of the Catholic Mass that sounds after the reading. It consists of a verse or psalm passage and is usually presented by a cantor and the congregation in alternation. The name goes back to Latin “gradus,” “step,” and probably means the place at which the chant was performed.
Musical use
The gradual belongs to the proper chants, that is, to the parts of the Mass that change according to feast day or time in the church year. It stands between the reading and the gospel and is usually followed by an alleluia. Its melodies are richly ornamented and belong to the most elaborate pieces of Gregorian chant. A gradual also denotes the book that contains the Mass chants, the Graduale Romanum.
The gradual should be distinguished from the alleluia, which follows as a chant of jubilation, and from the introit, the opening chant of the Mass. It also differs from the antiphonary, the book of the chants of the Divine Office, as the book for the Mass.
Performance practice
When you sing gradual melodies, follow the flow of the Latin text and shape the long melismas calmly and evenly. Keep the tone free and without vibrato, and sing the verses in alternation clearly and balanced.