Something different: Chant from the Eastern Churches
  • Aristotle EsguerraAristotle Esguerra
    Posts: 1,186
    Just discovered this fascinating album on Magnatune. Click on the link to listen to full tracks from it.

    Ensemble Sreteniye: Ancient Church Singing of Byzantine Georgia and Rus
  • mjballoumjballou
    Posts: 994
    Very nifty, Aristotle. Of course, you'll also need to pay a visit to the Monastery of Valaam, http://valaam.ru.terra.mtw.ru/en/

    They've added a large number of mp3s. There are also wonderful pages full of photographs of the "Athos of the North." Valaam had, of course, its own distinctive style of chant. If you sort through the contemporary photos, you can find some of the choirs that will let you see the pages of the chant books.

    The chant tradition disappeared almost completely from the Russian parish rite, being replaced with 4-part harmonizations based on a simplified system of tones. While these lack the melismatic and monodic power of chant, these systematized harmonies enable a moderately competent choir to move through enormous amounts of text, both psalms and poetry, that are the bulk of the vigil services. Oh, did I forget to mention that they're also wonderful to sing?
  • musico48
    Posts: 16
    I find that using Slavic chants such as the Znammeny and Kievan chant more easier for small choirs and for congregations than our own Chant. partly because Gregorian chant is best suited for Latin not the English language. I'm downloading some of the 8 Ressurectional settings and adapting both the Novus Ordo Mass settings and Antiphons. We already use the Kievan reponse for the Prayers of the Faithful PODAJI HOSPODI(Grant Us O Lord) It's easy to sing and harmonize!!
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