Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Role of Music
Singing is an integral part of every service Every part of the service is chanted or sung, with the exception of the sermon
When texts are read, they are chanted
All music is a cappella Text is most important aspect of music All participate in singing Clergy chanter choir congregation
Services
Orthodox Church is Liturgical Three types of services
Daily Services Liturgies (Eucharist services) Other offices
Wedding, Baptism, Unction, Akathist, Molieben, etc.
Liturgies
Divine Liturgy of St. James (c. 60 AD) Divine Liturgy of St. Basil (4th century) Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom Typica (read in place of liturgy)
Daily Services
Nocturnes (Midnight Office) Matins (Morning Service) 1st Hour (6am) 3rd Hour (9am) 6th Hour (Noon) 9th Hour (3pm) Vespers (Evening Service) Compline
Cycle of Services
Books that prescribe hymns
Horologion (Book of the Hours) Octoechos (Book of Eight Tones) Menaion (Daily services) Triodion (Lenten services) Pentecostarion (Easter and Pentecost)
Types of Hymns
Troparion Kontakion Sticheron Prokeimenon Irmos
The Octoechos
Book of the Eight Tones Contains Hymns for each day of the week
Sunday Resurrection Monday Angels Tuesday John the Baptist and other Prophets Wednesday The Cross and Christs Betrayal Thursday Apostles Friday Crucifixion Saturday Saints and Martyrs/Commemoration of the Dead
The Octoechos
Byzantine Chant
Each tone is a different mode (scale) Troparia & Stichera tones are similar In contemporary Greek practice, there are no tones for prokeimena, as they are read
Russian Chant
Now, several tones are in the same mode Troparia & Stichera tones are different There are several melodies for prokeimena
Octoechos
Byzantine Chant
There is only one set of Tones in all Byzantine traditions Tones 1-4 are related to tones 5-8
Tone 5 = Plagal 1st Tone 6 = Plagal 2nd Tone 7 = Grave Tone Tone 8 = Plagal 4th
Russian Chant
There are several sets of Tones from Russia; Kievan, Znameny, etc. There is no correlation between the eight tones
Byzantine Chant
Basis for all forms of Orthodox music Stems from chant of the synagogue Until 16th century, Byzantine Chant was monophonic The ison, or drone, was added in the midsixteenth century There are two ways to chant and two centers for Byzantine Chant throughout history
Constantinople
Seat of Orthodoxy during Byzantine Empire There was a distinct Grand Cathedral style of worship Chant was performed by professional chanters that also composed many of the hymns that have been passed down.
Mount Athos
Athonite Tradition
There are Twenty monasteries on Mount Athos Monastic life includes all daily services Each monastery has its own style of chanting Monastic style of worship was different from the Constantinopolitan worship Today, the Greek Church still follows Constantinopolitan practice to some degree, while the Russian Church has mostly adopted the Athonite style of worship
Style 1
Monks of St. Anthonys Monastery Rich men have become poor Grave Tone (Tone 7)
Style 2
Monks of Simonopetra Monastery Rich men have become poor Grave Tone (Tone 7)
Byzantine Notation
Uses signs to indicate intervals, dynamics, accents, pace, ornamentation, voice inflections Cannot be accurately transferred to Western notation At first, symbols were just added to texts to show the tones, and chanters would have them memorized To conserve lost melodies, Byzantine notation was created to be as specific as possible
Two Samples
Sticheron to St. Anthony at Lord, I have cried Tone 1 Troparion to St. Anthony Plagal 1st Tone (Tone 8)
Russian Chant
Inherited from Constantinople in 10th Century Was mostly monophonic until 17th Century Early chant Znameny (neumes or signs)
Simple melodies Evolved in 17th Century to include parts Demestveny Chant used for feasts
More complicated melodies
Russian Chant
Reforms by Patriarch Nikon in 17th Century caused split in the church
Western harmony was introduced Old Belivers split off and use only single part Znameny melodies
Znameny Notation
Similar to Byzantine notation Signs are mostly vertical, as opposed to Byzantine notation Square note notation was introduced as well, and manuscripts represent both styles
Znameny Samples
Troparion of the Cross Tone 1
15th Century Znameny Chant
Obikhod Chant
Developed by Bakhmetev and Lvov
court composers against classical composers writing church music in Western style
4 part harmony Sticheron tones in Obikhod chant are based on Kievan chant melodies Troparion tones are based on Greek Chant Prokeimena tones are based on Znameny chant Irmos Tones are combination of all three styles
In America
Due to multiple ethnic groups in the U.S., Orthodox churches now combine musical aspects of both traditions into their services A typical service might feature hymns in Byzantine, Kievan, Obikhod, Znameny, and other chant systems
Listening Examples
Paschal Canon Ode 1
Byzantine Chant Performed by Eikona
Exit Music
Psalm 103 Russian Greek Chant Arr. by Kedrov