Basic information about the Greek psaltic books
- Thread starter zinoviev
- Start date
I have put together a DVD with 100 scanned books of Byzantine music that we will start selling in our monastery's online bookstore in a week or two. Included with that DVD is a descriptive list of titles in English and Greek. (You can click on those links to see those descriptions now, even though the DVD isn't ready yet.)
But this isn't exactly what you were looking for, since it has no recommendations, and it has no recently published books. Hopefully someone else can answer your questions more directly.
But this isn't exactly what you were looking for, since it has no recommendations, and it has no recently published books. Hopefully someone else can answer your questions more directly.
Γιώργος Μ.
Γιώργος Μπάτζιος
As far as Byzantine Music is concerned this is by far the most important educational activity I have seen. Congratulations!
Nikolaos Giannoukakis
Παλαιό Μέλος
Dear Zinoviev,
Fr. Ephraim is putting together an incredibly-rich and comprehensive compendium that should be part of everyone's collection.
If you are really in a rush, here are some possible sources to find the hymns you seek:
For the katavasies (slow and succinct versions) you can find all that in volume 3 (Eirmologion) of the series published by Apostoliki diakonia of the Church of Greece under the general title "Mousikos Pandektis". Thae same volume contains the prologoi (the template melodies) of almost all of the canon eirmoi, the prosomoia, the exaposteilaria, the kontakia and it also includes the small and great paraclesis in music in full.
You can also find the katavasies and the most frequent canon eirmoi inside the Eirmologion of Ioannis Protopsaltis. A number of editions were published between the late 1800s to the early 1900s but I don't recall at this moment the specific dates. Fr. Ephraim might have a pdf of that somewhere.....
As for which books to use for what, there are three possible paths to follow, each with merits and distractions:
1) The simplest is to purchase the eight volume set by Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece under the name "Mousikos Pandektis". Each volume collects the hymns relevant to that specific ecclesiastic cycle (Vespers, Orthros, Eirmologion, Liturgy, Triodion, Pentecostarion, Minaion 1 and 2). A ninth volume is the Anastasimatarion.
2) Next, are the classic books of the 1800s, early 1900s. They are either single collections (i.e. eirmologion, anastasimatarion) or collections of hymns relevant to a specific ecclesiastic cycle (Orthros), a type of hymn (i.e. Doxastarion), or a collection of 2-3 volumes covering the common hymns of the entire year.
3) Newer publications that cover the entire year and every possible hymn you may want to study. Some are faithful to the classic books with an appropriate exegesis where required, others innovate, and others compile material from their contemporaries (!)
I would start with the "Mousikos Pandektis" series since it includes material from the classic books of the 18th-19th century. It is more than adequate to learn what you need to know at the analogion.
From what I remember, here are the contents (roughly) of each volume:
vol 1. Vespers- anoixantaria, makarios anir, kekragaria, prokeimena, lenten prokeimena, compline, pre-sanctified liturgy, general hymns of the litany including Bereketis' 8-tone Theotoke Parthene (minus the kratema)
vol. 2 orthros- Axion estin sequence of the mesonyktikon, polyeleoi, 50th psalm in 2nd, grave and plagal fourth, Anothen oi profitai, succinct doxologies of Manuel Protopsaltis and Ioannis Kavadas (2nd tone), representative slow doxologies in all 8 tones, simeron sotiria, yperevloghmeni
vol. 3 eirmologion- an updated and more comprehensive verison of the eirmologion of Ioannis Protopsaltis (see earlier)
vol. 4-liturgy- kyrie elehson, antiphon responses, o monogenis, Trisagia and various Dynamis, Eis polla eti despota, Allilouia of the Epistle (classic versions), Cherubic hymns in all tones (a variety of succinct and longer by Fokaeys, Konstantinos, Gregorius, Nikolaos of Smyrna, and......even Sakellarides (!), Tou Deipnou sou and Sigisato pasa sarx, a set of Axion Estin in all 8 tones, although many are not considered "traditional" in the sense of post-Naypliotis Patriarchal practice or rather, Constantinopolitan tradition; a VERY LIMITED series of anaphora hymns, classical koinonika in all 8 tones, some more succinct koinonika by......Sakellarides (!), some psalms in music that are recent compositions
vol.5 and 6: Minaia; the apolytikia, vesperal and orthros stichira and processional (liti) idiomela and vesperal/orthros doxastika of the major celebrating saints of the calendar year and those of the major feasts of the Lord and the Theotokos. Divided by month and then day of month. Missing the newer saints.
vol. 7: Triodion; the apolytikia, vesperal and orthros stichira and vesperal/orthros doxastika, lent-specific hymns of the vespers and orthros, contains all of Holy Week hymns up to Holy Saturday
vol. 8: Pentecostarion: the apolytikia, vesperal and orthros stichira and vesperal/orthros doxastika, pentecostarion-specific hymns of the vespers and orthros, covers the Paschal Pannychis up to All-Saints Sunday
Anastasimatarion: essentially the anastasimatarion of Ioannis Protopsaltis with corrections.
I hope this helps somewhat.
NG
Fr. Ephraim is putting together an incredibly-rich and comprehensive compendium that should be part of everyone's collection.
If you are really in a rush, here are some possible sources to find the hymns you seek:
For the katavasies (slow and succinct versions) you can find all that in volume 3 (Eirmologion) of the series published by Apostoliki diakonia of the Church of Greece under the general title "Mousikos Pandektis". Thae same volume contains the prologoi (the template melodies) of almost all of the canon eirmoi, the prosomoia, the exaposteilaria, the kontakia and it also includes the small and great paraclesis in music in full.
You can also find the katavasies and the most frequent canon eirmoi inside the Eirmologion of Ioannis Protopsaltis. A number of editions were published between the late 1800s to the early 1900s but I don't recall at this moment the specific dates. Fr. Ephraim might have a pdf of that somewhere.....
As for which books to use for what, there are three possible paths to follow, each with merits and distractions:
1) The simplest is to purchase the eight volume set by Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece under the name "Mousikos Pandektis". Each volume collects the hymns relevant to that specific ecclesiastic cycle (Vespers, Orthros, Eirmologion, Liturgy, Triodion, Pentecostarion, Minaion 1 and 2). A ninth volume is the Anastasimatarion.
2) Next, are the classic books of the 1800s, early 1900s. They are either single collections (i.e. eirmologion, anastasimatarion) or collections of hymns relevant to a specific ecclesiastic cycle (Orthros), a type of hymn (i.e. Doxastarion), or a collection of 2-3 volumes covering the common hymns of the entire year.
3) Newer publications that cover the entire year and every possible hymn you may want to study. Some are faithful to the classic books with an appropriate exegesis where required, others innovate, and others compile material from their contemporaries (!)
I would start with the "Mousikos Pandektis" series since it includes material from the classic books of the 18th-19th century. It is more than adequate to learn what you need to know at the analogion.
From what I remember, here are the contents (roughly) of each volume:
vol 1. Vespers- anoixantaria, makarios anir, kekragaria, prokeimena, lenten prokeimena, compline, pre-sanctified liturgy, general hymns of the litany including Bereketis' 8-tone Theotoke Parthene (minus the kratema)
vol. 2 orthros- Axion estin sequence of the mesonyktikon, polyeleoi, 50th psalm in 2nd, grave and plagal fourth, Anothen oi profitai, succinct doxologies of Manuel Protopsaltis and Ioannis Kavadas (2nd tone), representative slow doxologies in all 8 tones, simeron sotiria, yperevloghmeni
vol. 3 eirmologion- an updated and more comprehensive verison of the eirmologion of Ioannis Protopsaltis (see earlier)
vol. 4-liturgy- kyrie elehson, antiphon responses, o monogenis, Trisagia and various Dynamis, Eis polla eti despota, Allilouia of the Epistle (classic versions), Cherubic hymns in all tones (a variety of succinct and longer by Fokaeys, Konstantinos, Gregorius, Nikolaos of Smyrna, and......even Sakellarides (!), Tou Deipnou sou and Sigisato pasa sarx, a set of Axion Estin in all 8 tones, although many are not considered "traditional" in the sense of post-Naypliotis Patriarchal practice or rather, Constantinopolitan tradition; a VERY LIMITED series of anaphora hymns, classical koinonika in all 8 tones, some more succinct koinonika by......Sakellarides (!), some psalms in music that are recent compositions
vol.5 and 6: Minaia; the apolytikia, vesperal and orthros stichira and processional (liti) idiomela and vesperal/orthros doxastika of the major celebrating saints of the calendar year and those of the major feasts of the Lord and the Theotokos. Divided by month and then day of month. Missing the newer saints.
vol. 7: Triodion; the apolytikia, vesperal and orthros stichira and vesperal/orthros doxastika, lent-specific hymns of the vespers and orthros, contains all of Holy Week hymns up to Holy Saturday
vol. 8: Pentecostarion: the apolytikia, vesperal and orthros stichira and vesperal/orthros doxastika, pentecostarion-specific hymns of the vespers and orthros, covers the Paschal Pannychis up to All-Saints Sunday
Anastasimatarion: essentially the anastasimatarion of Ioannis Protopsaltis with corrections.
I hope this helps somewhat.
NG
If you ask 10 psaltai, you may get 10 different answers. The Mousikos Pandektis series mentioned by Mr Giannoukakis (published by Zoe, not Apostoliki Diakonia if I recall correctly) has been indeed a de facto classic not so for all of its volumes though and certainly not for all its content. to this date there isn't a single book that is ratified as 'the standard'. Variations and differences exist from book to book. However, the shortlist of classical texts given by Mr Giannoukakis and the nearly exhaustive list of Fr Ephraim should have you covered. You may want to look at 19th century editions of Patriarchal psaltai officially approved by the Ecumenical Patriarchate. The 4-volume Mousike Pandekte (1850) is probably the most well known one. Together with Heirmologion and Anastasimatarion of Petros or Ioannis protopsaltis should be enough for most needs.
Nikolaos Giannoukakis
Παλαιό Μέλος
Dimitris Koubaroulis is correct about the Mousikos Pandekths published by ZOE Editions and NOT by Apostoliki Diakonia, although the Apostoliki Diakonia BOOKSTORE is one of many in Athens and Thessaloniki that sell the series....
Thank you for the correction, Dimitris....
NG
Thank you for the correction, Dimitris....
NG