Now playing: Meet it is – 17 th Century Valaam Chant

1. Now playing: Meet it is – 17th Century Valaam Chant

2. The Cycle of the Eight Tones Performance Practice in the Eastern Orthodox Church

3. Brief History of Orthodoxy • Founded at Pentecost (Acts Ch. 2) • Church of the Seven Ecumenical Councils • 1st in Nicea (325 AD) – Nicene Creed • 7th in Nicea (787 AD) – Confirmation of Icons • Originally governed by five patriarchs • Rome, Constantinople, Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria • 1054 marks the Great Schism – Rome separates from Eastern Church

4. Brief History of Orthodoxy • 988 – Baptism of Russia • Moscow becomes 5th Patriarchate in 16th century • Orthodoxy is official religion of the Byzantine and Russian Empires • There are now 15 autocephalous Orthodox Churches world-wide • 2nd Largest Christian Denomination in the World

5. 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

6. Services • Orthodox Church is Liturgical • Three types of services • Daily Services • Liturgies (Eucharist services) • Other offices • Wedding, Baptism, Unction, Akathist, Molieben, etc.

7. 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) • Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts • By St. Gregory Dialogus • Used only during Great Lent

8. Daily Services • Nocturnes (Midnight Office) • Matins (Morning Service) • 1st Hour (6am) • 3rd Hour (9am) • 6th Hour (Noon) • 9th Hour (3pm) • Vespers (Evening Service) • Compline

9. 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)

10. Types of Hymns • Troparion • Kontakion • Sticheron • Prokeimenon • Irmos

11. 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 Christ’s Betrayal • Thursday – Apostles • Friday – Crucifixion • Saturday – Saints and Martyrs/Commemoration of the Dead

12. 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 The Octoechos

13. 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 Octoechos

14. How does the Octoechos Work? • The Eight Tones rotate on an eight week cycle, beginning with the 2nd Sunday of Pentecost • The “Tone of the Week” is used for all daily hymns in each service • Hymns from other books, such as the Menaion, are also added into the daily services, depending on the time of year • These hymns are also assigned a specific tone, but not necessarily the tone of the week • Set hymns for each service, from the Horologion, can also be assigned a different tone

15. Daily Vespers: an outline • Usual Beginning – set of prayers for opening most services • Psalm 103 – Read by chanter • Great Litany – Priest/Deacon & Choir • Kathisma – Reading from Psalter • Little Litany – Priest/Deacon & Choir • Lord, I have cried – Psalms 140, 141, 129, 116; sung in tone of the week • Contains hymns from the octoechos and possibly the Menaion or other book, depending on the time of year

16. Daily Vespers (cont.) • Gladsome Light – Choir • Prokeimenon – Priest/Deacon & Choir • Prayer read by chanter • Litany of Supplication – Priest/Deacon & Choir • Aposticha – Sung in tone of the week • Prayer of St. Simeon – read or sung in Tone 6 • Trisagion prayers read by chanter • Troparia of the day – Sung in different tones • Augmented Litany – Priest/Deacon & Choir • Dismissal – Priest & Choir

17. 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 mid-sixteenth century • There are two ways to chant and two centers for Byzantine Chant throughout history

18. 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.

19. Mount Athos

20. Athonite Tradition • There are Twenty monasteries on Mount Athos • Monastic life includes all daily services • Each monastery has it’s 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

21. Two styles of Byzantine Chant • 1) One chanter sings the melody, while the others all chant the ison • 2) Half of the chanters sing the melody, and the others all chant the ison • Style 1 allows for more ornamentation • Both styles involve two choirs singing antiphonally

22. Style 1 Monks of St. Anthony’s Monastery “Rich men have become poor” Grave Tone (Tone 7)

23. Style 2 Monks of Simonopetra Monastery “Rich men have become poor” Grave Tone (Tone 7)

24. 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

27. Two Samples • Sticheron to St. Anthony at Lord, I have cried – Tone 1 • Troparion to St. Anthony – Plagal 1st Tone (Tone 8)

28. 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

29. 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

30. 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

32. Znameny Samples • Troparion of the Cross – Tone 1 • 15th Century Znameny Chant • Troparion of the Cross – Tone 1 • 17th Century Znameny Chant

33. Other forms of Russian Chant • Monastic communities in Russia compose their own chant melodies • Valaam Chant – island monastery on Lake Ladoga • Trinity-Sergius Chant – Patriarchal Monastery near Moscow • Kievan Chant – Monastery of the Kiev Caves • From Kievan Chant comes Obikhod (Common)

34. Obikhod Chant • Developed by Bakhmetev and L’vov • “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

35. Troparion – Obikhod Tone 1 Based on Greek chant Best known Russian melody Used by Tchaikovsky for 1812 Overture

36. Two Listening Examples • Kievan Chant – Tone 6 • “Having Beheld the Resurrection of Christ” • St. Vladimir’s Seminary Male Chorus • Obikhod Chant – Tone 6 • “Thy Resurrection, O Christ our Savior” • St. Vladimir’s Seminary Clergy

37. Other Russian Traditions • Many feasts for saints or events are written to special melodies, or podoben • Peter the Great and the Westernization of Russia • Brought in Italian architects and musicians • Italian opera was performed in the Russian court • Giuseppe Sarti become the official court music director Dmitri Bortniansky takes over and adds Italian techniques to Russian traditions • Becomes one of the most prolific composers of Russian church music • Develops the Sacred Concerto – non-liturgical piece sung during clergy communion

38. Other Russian Traditions • Composers of “art” music begin to write sacred music • Imperial Chapel censors much of it • Settings of the Divine Liturgy and All-Night Vigil start appearing from Tchaikovsky and others • Many of these are not used in Liturgical worship • Condemned as “too Western”

39. “Golden Age” of Russian Choral Music • From late 19th Century until 1917 • Between 15-20 composers write settings of the Divine Liturgy and All-Night Vigil • Pavel Chesnokov composes almost 200 pieces of Sacred music • Others are Kastalsky, Archangelsky, Gretchaninoff, Rachmaninoff, Kalinnikov • Ends with Bolshevik Revolution • Sacred music is practically banned

40. 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

41. Listening Examples • Paschal Canon – Ode 1 • Byzantine Chant • Performed by Eikona • Paschal Canon – Ode 1 • Russian “Greek” Chant • Performed by St. Vladimir’s Male Chorus

42. Exit Music Psalm 103Russian “Greek” Chant Arr. by Kedrov