Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Melania-Elena NAGY
1. Objective. Sources
The aim of our paper is to describe the chromatic genre, as well as
the varied manner in which it manifests itself within a category of
frequently used chants during the orthodox services - namely that of the
podoben. The sources we have based our research on are taken mainly
from manuscripts in the Byzantine tradition kept in the libraries of ClujNapoca. We have identified two Romanian manuscripts and a Greek
one1, in which the podoben have been grouped into separate series,
based on the order of the modes. One of the two Romanian manuscripts
comes from the private library of poet Marcel Mureeanu from ClujNapoca, some copies of this document being kept in the library of the
Gheorghe Dima Music Academy (Cluj-Napoca), under call number Ib
2559. Due to the five polychronia it contains, which are dedicated to
both Voivodes Alexandru Dimitrie Ghica and Grigore Dimitrie Ghica, as
well as to the Bishop of Rmnic Neofit2 who eventually became
Metropolitan of Ungro-Wallachia (to whom three of the five polychronia
are being dedicated), we can date this document as being written around
1840, the year of Neofits enthronement as Metropolitan. The other
Romanian manuscript belongs to the special collections in the Octavian
Goga County Library under call number Ms. II-14. Fr. Petru Stanciu,
who studied this manuscript, dates it according to the note from f. 165r
April 12th 18713. It is compiled, therefore, 31 years later than the first
manuscript under discussion. The third document is written in Greek
and belongs to the Cipariu Fund of the Library of the Romanian
Academy (Cluj-Napoca Branch). It was written by a certain Marinos 4,
1
12
1st mode, with the scale borrowed from the 2nd authentic mode
On practical grounds, the singer usually transposes the chant a second lower, from
ke to di (a fourth higher from pa). In the given situation, the transposition occurs in
written form, the copyist mentioning di as a starting pitch.
14
I use this term for the melody between two martyrias.
13
15
I have inserted the predominant cadential formula within a green frame. The
variations of this formula are marked with the help of the hexagonal frames.
It seems that this version, having its tonic on ke, is the most
frequently sung in Greece too. In Teoria i practica muzicii bisericeti ,
by G. Konstantinou, the mode is entitled glasul I cromatic moale difonic
de la ke (first mode, soft chromatic diphonos, from ke)17. Here we are
also remainded that, in the past, the 1st mode had its tonic on ke, some
chants being transcribed in the New Method with the same tonic. The
scale of kathisma makes reference to the 1st mode branch
known as naos. Today, in the psaltic music books, this structure is
presented as belonging to the 1st mode, being sung, though, as a scale
specific to the 2nd mode and receiving thus its phthora, on ke, as well as
all its features.18
In the other printed book I have chosen for comparison (the
collection of podoben published in Cluj19) the podoben is in the 1st
mode, having its tonic on di, with the chromatic phthora of the 2nd
authentic mode (ex. 7). With a double notation chrysantine and
western staff notation, the latest has an A-flat as key signature 20. Even
though it has the same tonic as the version in ex.1, the scale and,
implicitly, the cadential formulas are different. The formulas are, on the
other hand, identical to the ones in ex. 2-3 (Ms. II-14) and 6
(Anastasimatar), but a second lower and similar to those in ex. 5 (Ms.
O. 354) a fourth higher. Consequently, the first version is the most
different in comparison to the other ones.
theoreticons). Thus, there are many Greek versions of this kathisma. See, for example,
http://analogion.com/forum/showthread.php?t=20 (
)
22
Tore Tvarn Lind, The Past Is Always Present: The Revival of the Byzantine Musical
Tradition at Mount Athos, Scarecrow Press, Lanham, MD, 2012, p. 96
23
T.T. Lind, op. cit., p. 96
24
See ex. 11
10
At first sight, the podoben is in the 2 nd mode, the key being typical
to this mode in all given examples26. The scale, though, differs, aspect
indicated by the different phthoras. Two examples share the phthora of
the 6th mode (2nd plagal) and the tonic pa (ex. 12 and 15), and the other
two have the phthora of the 2nd mode and the tonic di (ex. 13 and 14).
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The Greek manuscript represents an apparent exception, for the key is that specific to
the 2nd plagal mode, as it appears in the Romanian Theoreticons. Yet, the podoben is in
the 2nd authentic mode, as it does not have a plagal indication. On the other hand,
throughout this manuscript, the key is the same both for the authentic modes and
related plagal ones, the difference lying only in the mention (plagal), in the second
case.
11
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12
The printed version (ex. 19) opens just like the version in Ms. II 14
BJC (ex. 17). Yet, the indication of the mode is slightly different from the
manuscript versions, having the indication forma glasului II (borrowing
the 2nd mode scale).
This is another podoben in the 4th mode, with the scale borrowed
from the 2nd mode. However, in the private manuscript, the key is that of
the 2nd mode (ex. 20) and not of the 4 th mode, as opposed to the
preceding podoben from the same manuscript, which has the same
scale, but a 4th mode key (ex. 16).
13
This is the last podoben in the 4th mode, this time having the scale
specific to the 2nd plagal mode (6th mode). In Teoria si practica muzicii
bisericesti30, this mode is named the hard chromatic 4 th mode
(nenano). It is here too that we discover that this sedalny stands as a
testimony to the fact that nenano was considered a 4 th chromatic mode
by those from ancient times, whereas in the actual notation it is
considered to be either a 2 nd plagal mode, triphonos, or simply
nenano31
30
15
16
33
The copyist of the private manuscript is obviously influenced by the Greek models.
One can notice the manner in which he notates the keys, his preference to the use of
the term eh, and the inclusion of a Greek cherubic hymn.
17
18
4. Conclusions
The chromatic genre presents itself as extremely varied within the
proposed category of chants. The examples illustrate a series of
combinations of genres, modes and keys (or ways of indicating modes).
Thus, there are podobens in the 1 st mode borrowing the 2nd mode scale,
in the 2nd mode borrowing the 6th (2nd plagal) mode scale, in the 4th
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mode borrowing the 2nd authentic or 2nd plagal (6th) mode scale, and
finally podobens in the 6th (2nd plagale) mode borrowing the 2nd
authentic mode scale. Practice, as reflected in the musical repertoire of
the manuscripts, shows itself richer and more nuanced than the theory.
The versions resemble one another, sometimes to a greater extent, at
other times to a lesser extent, for one and the same podoben. Even
though we are referring to a noted repertoire, this repertoire manifests
the dynamics specific to the oral tradition, the variation, respectively the
versions, being specific notably to the oral tradition. Orality probably
plays a bigger role than one might think or wish, even if it involves a
written repertoire.
5. Bibliography
Cluj-Napoca
4. *** Anastasimatarul cuviosului Macarie Ieromonahul cu
adugiri din cel al paharnicului Dimitrie Suceveanu, Bucureti,
Editura Bizantin, 2002
5. *** Podobii i axioane. Culegere de muzic bisericeasc ortodox
ntocmit de pr. prof. dr. Nicu Moldoveanu i de pr. lect. dr.
Vasile Stanciu, Cluj-Napoca, Editura Arhidiecezana, 1996
6. *** Dicionar de termeni muzicali, Bucureti, Editura
Enciclopedic, 2008
7. Angelopoulus, Lykourgos Vocile Bizanului, Iai, Asociaia
Cultural Byzantion, 2011
8. Barbu-Bucur, Sebastian Elemente teoretice la Filotei sin Agi
Jipei Gramatica muzical, n Studii de muzicologie, vol. XI,
Bucureti, Editura Muzical 1976, pp. 175-229
9. Barbu-Bucur, Sebastian Ioan sin Radului Duma Braoveanu,
n Studii de muzicologie, vol. X, Bucureti, Editura Muzical
1974, pp. 161-222
10.
Ciobanu, Gheorghe Muzica bizantin, n Studii de
muzicologie, vol. VI, Bucureti, Editura Muzical, 1970, pp. 6997
11. Ciobanu, Gheorghe Teorie, practic, tradiie factorii
complementari necesari descifrrii vechii muzici bizantine, n
Studii de muzicologie, vol. XVII, Bucureti, Editura Muzical
1983, pp. 191-198
12. Ciobanu, Gheorghe Vechimea genului cromatic n muzica
bizantin, n Studii de muzicologie, vol. IX, Bucureti, Editura
Muzical 1973. pp. 88-93
13. Csakany, Zsofia, Nemeth, Istvn Un manuscris de muzic
psaltic din Biblioteca Timotei Cipariu, n Acta musicae
Byzantinae, volumul II, numrul 1, Iai, Aprilie, 2000, pp. 146148
14.Dura, Carmen Contribuii la cunoaterea operei lui Anton
Pann. Anastasimatarul, n Byzantion Romanicon, vol. 8-9, Iai,
Editura Artes, 2012, pp. 234-262
15. Konstantinou N., Georgios Teoria i practica muzicii
bisericeti, vol. 1, ed. a II-a revizuit i adugit, Iai, Asociaia
Cultural Byzantion, 2012
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Abstract
The aim of this paper is to present the diverse manner in which the
chromatic genre occurs in the podoben (prosomia) melodies, using
examples taken mainly from the manuscripts kept in Cluj-Napoca
libraries. Beside the frequent case of the chromatic second authentic
mode exchanging scale with its plagal, there are also podobens in
diatonic modes borrowing scales of the chromatic modes. We found
Romanian manuscripts and also Greek ones containing series of
podobens for all eight modes. Each of these podobens has a number of
variants, as reflected in the chosen manuscripts and printed books. The
oral tradition influence is evident once more even when we are dealing
with a written repertoire, such as the one analysed in this paper.
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