When we speak of organic development for our Hellenic Psaltic Art here in Greece we speak of a purely vocal system of chant using the eight-mode system and unique notational alphabet up to the New Method as a few of the most basic characteristic elements, so as not to deal with the slippery 'aesthetic' terminology, i.e. 'I like this', 'The "people" like this', 'This is pretty', 'This is not'.
It is quite clear that the music that the GOA hierarchy and 'official' federations are promoting is based an overriding appreciation of the western European musical heritage and a devaluation of its own eastern, Hellenic Psaltic Art. There is evident even a kind of embarrassment attitude which looks upon the Hellenic chant heritage as 'uncultured' or 'unsophisticated'. The fact that this attitude was operative in Greece with Sakellarides and his students does not make it organic. We have discussed the historical roots in other posts in the past on this list. Similar attitudes existed on Orthodox iconography, also, but were overcome. America, GOA America that is, has simply remained in a kind of a time warp for some reason. The 'destruction' of its musical heritage will one day be looked upon with awe. Here are a couple reasons I can think of.
The reasons for this are not so much musical as they are social, possibly. If I am not mistaken, this is what Basil refers to when he comments on the prevailing 'political organization', lack of monasticism, blandness, and institutionalization.
On the other hand, to hint that the use of our Hellenic psaltic heritage would digress into a 'disastrous sectarianism', in my opinion, is a bit far-fetched and completely un-American, if America is indeed the 'land of the free'.
The powers that be there in America have systematically decided to succumb to the reformed Protestant musical culture they are surrounded by (just as the Roman Catholic and Jews have in various ways). Mind you, not everyone wants this. It's just that enough people in high places do. They happen to not value the musical heritage as an integral part of the spiritual heritage. Most people have no clue and, hence, as it goes with the uninformed, no choice. The choice is made by others.
I remember when I first went to teach Byzantine Music at Holy Cross in 1990. A hierarch took me aside and played a cassette tape of Papapostolou (not the one who chanted in Washington, DC, but his brother), a composer of secular music in Greece. The tape was of a performance of the composer's 'Div. Liturgy'. It was not a piece he wrote for use in worship, but for extra-ecclesial performance, very much in the tradition of Theodorakes' liturgy, it was instrumental and vocal. The hierarch played a piece of the doxology and told me, 'this is the future of ecclesiastical music in America'.
After the strictly musical and social points, there is also the theological, or more precise, liturgical side of things. In the desire to 'Americanize' liturgical and ecclesiastical life music is one of the elements that take the blame and, hence, becomes a victim of the aggressive spirit of liturgical populism. 'People cannot relate to the music!' Or, as was stated earlier in this thread, 'people really don't like Byzantine music'. Rather than realizing that communal prayer is something truly foreign to most of our population, a scapegoat is needed to blame low attendance on. The 'new music' will bring 'em in! This is the liturgical problem, both separate and related at the same time.
Music, society and liturgics. The conversation is quite interesting.
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About Me
- FRCJT
- I was born in East St Louis, Illinois in 1961 and grew up in South St Louis, Missouri. I abandoned the music program at Southern Illinois University after deciding to study theology. To this end I enrolled at Hellenic College, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology and received the BA and MDiv degrees from these schools. From there I received scholarships to complete a doctoral dissertation in Byzantine Musicology at the School of Theology of the National and Capodistrian University of Athens, Greece, from which I received the ThD in the year 2000; my dissertation was published in the Meletai series of the Institute of Byzantine Musicology. Most dear to my heart is the family I have been blessed with: my wife Diann, my daughter, Maria, and one unborn child God decided to keep for Himself. Presently, I live on the island of Aegina with my family and where I presently sit and write my psaltic musings.