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129contracted this peculiarity of singing as well as their manner of speaking” (cited fromHibberd, 1955:8).From the later historical sources we know that an interesting style of polyphonicsinging – glee singing - existed in England. It was a non-professional tradition of singingin three or more parts, without instrumental accompaniment. The famous Copper familyof Rottingdean, Sussex, is believed to be a continuation of the earlier glee-singingtradition. Their songs have been recorded and documented. There were also other formsof polyphonic activity ell in the 18 th and 19 th centuries: “Church and military bandsplayed in harmony in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and were widely heard andsung to” (Gammon, 2000:327).According to the available material, popular forms of harmonic singing inEngland are based on the common European classical system with parallel thirds andtriad chords. However, some examples of early English professional polyphony presentsanother polyphonic singing style, based on the use of a drone, a small range of themelody, and secondal dissonances. Here is a rare example of earlier drone typeprofessional polyphony:Ex. 75. England. (Schneider, 1969, part 3, #35)Here we need to mention that besides the direct quite and detailed informationabout the vocal polyphony in England by Cambrensis, chronologically earlier sourcesfrom England also mention polyphony. Johan Scot Erigena, great Irish thinker of the 9 thcentury, speaks about the simultaneousness of the sounds for the idea of musical harmony(Handschin, 1932:513). Handschin mentions even the earlier source from the 7 th century,an Anglo-Saxon writer Aldhelm, who, according to Handschin “is the first medievalwriter who distinctly refers to part-singing” (ibid, 513).WalesIn the writings of Giraldus Cambrensis about part-singing in the British IslesWales occupies the central place (Hibberd, 1955). Cambrensis’ claim that “you can hearin Wales as many voices [parts] as there are singers” might be an exaggeration, but therecan be little doubt that a well-developed tradition of traditional polyphony existed in 12 thcentury Wales.An interesting folk tradition of reading the biblical texts in two parts (at a fifthinterval) has been described by Kinney: “Declamation in the Welsh folk tradition is stillto be heard in canu’r pwnc ‘singing the text’. As now practiced in southern Wales, thetradition is connected with reciting biblical scriptures at catechismal festivals, whichbecame prevalent in the early 1800s. The style of sung recitation may, however, be mucholder. In a typical example, a passage from the Bible is announced, and the precentorsounds the note. One group enters immediately on the same note, a second part comes inat a fifth above, and the two parts chant together at that interval. The rhythm of the chantis clear, the tone firm and rather staccato, the diction clear. Phrasing is according to