Is this where I would post questions about the Byzantine rite?

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ByzCathCantor said:
Indeed, the chant of the Byzantine Catholic Church in America, and its Ruthenian Catholic counterparts in Eastern Europe, is called “Prostopinije”, or Plain Chant. Though descended from Greek chant, it has taken the character of its native lands and is considered a highly evolved form. There are similarities and overlaps with the chant traditions of the Churches (Catholic and Orthodox) of Byzantine-Slav tradition.

For more information, there is a website dedicated to supporting the chant tradition of the Byzatine Catholic Church in America: Metropolitan Cantor Institute. While designed for cantors (who lead chant during services), there are several informational articles on the site that you might find helpful.
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What still throws me off is that the southern Slavs will use Byzantine Chant. How they manage to fit Church Slavonic/Serbian/Bulgarian into those melodies meant for Greek texts, I will never know.
 
Cavaradossi said:
What still throws me off is that the southern Slavs will use Byzantine Chant. How they manage to fit Church Slavonic/Serbian/Bulgarian into those melodies meant for Greek texts, I will never know.
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Indeed, and I happen to enjoy it very much! I find Romanian Chant to be the clearest hybrid of Greek & Slavic styles.
 
I just listened to some “Prostopinije” on YouTube, and, while I didnt find anything I recognized, the compositional quality of music sounds very similar to what I hear them singing.

I wish I knew the composers and titles because then it would probably be easier to find the music. They use a teal colored hardbound book - which is about all I can say about it.
 
William777 said:
Heh… ehhhhh… okay, now I am confused again… I’ll just have to ask the Deacon about what we do…

In the meantime, I am listening to this:

youtube.com/watch?v=IxTGLbNMGVk&feature=related

Is THAT what it is supposed to sound like? It’s certainly very beautiful.
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That sounds like Russian-style polyphony. I guess it’s not unheard of for the Byzantine Catholic Church to use it, but it certainly isn’t plain chant (nothing very plain about Russian polyphony, I’d say). 😃
William777 said:
And can someone please tell me if that song to the guardian angles is a good piece to use for an impromptu novena to the guardian angels?
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If you’re looking for a devotional-type prayer, I might suggest looking at the canon to the guardian angel. Yes, this is from a Greek Orthodox source, but I’m almost certain that Eastern Catholics use this canon too, since it’s not a very new one.

Edit: I forgot to include The Order of Reading Canons and Akathists when alone. Use this as a general skeleton to form a ‘service’ of sorts around the canon contained in the other link.
 
William777 said:
Heh… ehhhhh… okay, now I am confused again… I’ll just have to ask the Deacon about what we do…

In the meantime, I am listening to this:

youtube.com/watch?v=IxTGLbNMGVk&feature=related

Is THAT what it is supposed to sound like? It’s certainly very beautiful.
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This is more of a choral, Russian Orthodox style.

If you want a truly special version, try the Christmas Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral in Mukachevo, Ukraine, our “Mother Church”. Its in Ukrainian and Church Slavonic, but that really doesn’t matter - the chant is divine!

youtube.com/watch?v=Kc3BGS87yLs&list=PL05997E294F95AFD9&index=5&feature=plpp_video
William777 said:
And can someone please tell me if that song to the guardian angles is a good piece to use for an impromptu novena to the guardian angels?
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This is really not the arena for advice on novenas.
 
ByzCathCantor said:
We could, indeed, use this and chant it to traditional (Kievan) Akathist melodies.
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Or do what I do and awkwardly read half of it because I don’t know the melodies for half of the canons, and don’t know what the original Greek heirmoi are titled, such that I can’t find them in the heirmologion. 😃
 
Cavaradossi said:
Or do what I do and awkwardly read half of it because I don’t know the melodies for half of the canons, and don’t know what the original Greek heirmoi are titled, such that I can’t find them in the heirmologion. 😃
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Well, I’d have a few people upset with me if I forgot how to chant a Canon or Akathist 😃

Sorry William for the banter, but hopefully it proves one thing about Byzantine Catholics and Eastern Christians, more generally - we take our liturgy, prayer and chant rather seriously. 😉
 
What are those two, round, gold plate-like things on wooden rods that are on the altar?
 
William777 said:
I just listened to some “Prostopinije” on YouTube, and, while I didnt find anything I recognized, the compositional quality of music sounds very similar to what I hear them singing.

I wish I knew the composers and titles because then it would probably be easier to find the music. They use a teal colored hardbound book - which is about all I can say about it.
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Sorry I can’t be of much help, since we Greek Orthodox use a stylish green book for our liturgy (anathema to those Antiochians who use a garish red book :D), but I’m willing to bet that any Ruthenian Catholic posters here could tell you about that teal book.
 
William777 said:
What are those two, round, gold plate-like things on wooden rods that are on the altar?
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ConstantineTG can explain it best, as he has been seen here wielding them!

They are properly called ripidia, or liturgical fans. Seraphs are depicted on them.
 
ByzCathCantor said:
Now, now! 😊 We need not speak of that! :tsktsk:
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I honestly do not know if you guys like or dislike the teal book. If it is anything like the Greek Orthodox green book, however, well, then perhaps we should just go back to not speaking about either one. :rotfl:
 
William777 said:
I just listened to some “Prostopinije” on YouTube, and, while I didnt find anything I recognized, the compositional quality of music sounds very similar to what I hear them singing.
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On the “Prostopinije” channel? A great choir featured there. The choral works are common to Byzantine-Slav churches, including the Russian and Ukrainian Orthodox Churches. We share a choral tradition. The channel name is a bit of a misnomer in that regard.
 
Cavaradossi said:
I honestly do not know if you guys like or dislike the teal book.
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Depends on who you talk to, and the subject matter (translation; rubric; chant patterns).

I plead the 5th!

That said, it’s my job to support my bishop, priest and our chant tradition - I try my best.
 
William777 said:
What are those two, round, gold plate-like things on wooden rods that are on the altar?
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Ripidia or ripidion, depends on who you ask.

Historically they were fans used to shoo away the bugs that would try to get on the gifts during the Anaphora. They evolved into ornaments that symbolize the wings of the Seraphim and the servers (usually the subdeacons) will hold them over things of importance such as the Book of Gospels, the Gifts, or in my case, the Patriarch 😉
 
ByzCathCantor said:
Depends on who you talk to, and the subject matter (translation; rubric; chant patterns).

I plead the 5th!

That said, it’s my job to support my bishop, priest and our chant tradition - I try my best.
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I’ll have to double check the color when I go to the Byzantine parish on the 7th of October (praying I get that part of the day off I requested…) 😉
 
lssanjose said:
I’ll have to double check the color when I go to the Byzantine parish on the 7th of October (praying I get that part of the day off I requested…) 😉
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😃 Trust me - the color has quite definitely and popularly identified as “teal”
 
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