The Liturgical Placements of the Quem quaeritis Dialogue
Timothy J. McGee
N RECENT YEARS, two authors have taken a new look at the earliest history of Quem quaeritis dialogue and seriously questioned traditional theories concerning its origin early as set forth in Karl Young's The Drama Medieval Church.' Helmut de Boor attempted to sort out various lines dissemination by classifying texts according minor variants,2 0. B. Hardison pursued dramatic textual components Easter Vigil liturgy.3 Both these investigations add valuable information our knowledge dialogue, but one aspect subject has thus far been accepted without question well all other writers on subject: theory liturgical placement dialogue. commonly theory, elucidated Young,4 is that began trope Introit Antiphon Mass, it was later detached from included procession, placed end Matins before eventually being entirely liturgy stand own an independent drama. motive for this migration said purposes expansion drama, proof offered each successive examples can be found with additional lines. With exception Hardison, who find origins text service, no doubted any although there are several reasons suspect tenets. First, if were indeed begun Mass Introit, would only known example migratory trope; tropes grew part particular item associated item. Second,
Journal of the American Musicological Society