Leise

The Leise or Leis (plural Leisen; from the Greek kyrie eleison) is a genre of vernacular medieval church song. They appear to have originated in the German-speaking regions, but are also found in Scandinavia, and are a precursor of Protestant church music.

Leisen arose in the Middle Ages as brief responses in the vernacular to sung elements of the Latin Mass, especially sequences sung on feast days of the ecclesiastical year, and were also sung during processionals and on pilgrimages. They often consist of a single stanza, ending in some form of Kyrie eleison, which is supposedly the origin of the name.