Common phrases in the music

I pointed out that certain psalms are related to what has gone before when their first note is not the tonic. This thesis has served me before and while there are possible caveats, it seems quite useful. For example, Psalms 114-115 are a unit. In exitu Israel is not to be seen as glorifying Israel, so the attacca psalm 115, Non nobis domine must be seen as a corrective to that potential thought.

Another test is to see that when two verses share the same music, is there a connection? (Same music = same sequence of te-amim; same notes = same sequence of te-amim below the text). Such sequences of notes can be recognized.

We are dealing with several languages here and it is very easy to get lost. Using the Latin titles of the psalms was common in the 17th century, less so today. Not too difficult if you've been around the churches and have heard psalms chanted in Latin. But who would think that the following two sequences were a translation from one tongue into another:

e C B g A, f e. Musicians get this. So would anyone with grade 1 piano or voice. Tonic sol-fa is equally acceptable if not more so.  But:

silluq mahpakh munah tifha atnah, merkha silluq. Musicians don't get this. Hebrew accent scholars don't get it either. No musicianship - no decoding.

The 20th century musician, Suzanne Haïk-Vantoura, mapped the language of named te'amim from Hebrew to music. I can barely speak to those who go on and on about which accent precedes or follows another. The language is so foreign to me. But sing me a phrase - decoding the notes - and I won't need any explanation.

Here's my second idea on how to interpret musical phrases. If a verse has identical notes to another verse, then I suggest there may be a significant relationship between them.

Two different theses here: (They apply across all 24 books. But I am concentrating on the psalms for the moment.)

1. when the first note is not the tonic - look for a connection between this verse / psalm / book and what has gone before it.
2. when verses have identical (or similar) music phrases, look for a connection between them.

In the psalms, consider Psalm 1: Verses 1 to 4 are unique as to their musical phrases. Verse 5 is identical to Psalm 6:11. Now that is significant. Why?

So they will not arise, the wicked, in the judgment, // nor sinners in the assembly of the-many righteous.

Shamed and vexed much all my enemies. // Let them turn, let them be ashamed in a moment.

Psalm 6 is a plea that Yahweh not judge the psalmist in anger. If you have read these personally with or without the music, you will get that much given to you. Then the poet knows that judgment is good and so prays for 'all my enemies' so that they will turn and learn the same message from Yahweh. Shame is positive here. Let us pray for Russia today - for they need shame to turn from their evil ways and evil thoughts. Denial, rationalization, self-justification will not do the job.

The promise in psalm 1 is reflected in psalm 6 - the musical phrase is identical.

The music of the last verse of psalm 1 is reflected 32 times in the psalms. Is this musical motif significant for partitioning the book of psalms? Check them out: 1:6, 30:2, 33:7, 34:17, 37:10, 49:21, 50:18, 51:14, 56:12, 58:6, 66:16, 68:33, 72:14, 74:3, 74:4, 74:8, 77:15, 86:10, 88:15, 89:47, 105:44, 112:2, 112:8, 115:11, 118:6, 118:23, 119:39, 124:2, 136:9, 136:12, 139:8, 140:2.

What phrases are common like this one?  There are 1157 distinct musical phrases taken a verse at a time in the psalms. 61 of these occur more than 5 times. Here another example of one that occurs 4 times. There are 19 of these and these 4 are among them: 

21:4, For you go before him with blessings of good. // You set on his head a crown of pure gold.
44:21, If we have forgotten the name of our God, // and spread our palms to a strange god,
115:5, Mouth they have and speak not. // Eyes they have and see not.
135:16. Mouth they have but they don't speak. // Eyes they have but they don't see.

A curious collection. Not entirely random. To what extent is our trouble idolatry? It's possible that this approach might bear fruit.

These first trials have been done with the whole musical phrase including ornaments. If we just look at the overall curvature of the phrase isolating the accents below the text, and ignoring ornaments, we will get more commonality. There are 70 phrases that occur more than 5 times if the accents above the text are ignored.