Part song

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The term "Part Song" can be applied to any song written for several vocal parts but is usually applied to one where the highest part carries the melody with the other voices supplying the accompanying harmonies rather than one which is contrapuntal like a madrigal. They are often sung unaccompanied. Franz Schubert, Robert Schumann and Felix Mendelssohn had all contributed to the genre, but they gained popularity in England in the nineteenth century with the growth of choral societies.