Greece: Great Octotonal Chant to the Virgin

by Theodore Vassilikos, Vassilikos Ensemble, Ensemble Theodore Vassilikos

Overview

In the 18th century Greece began the process of throwing off the domination of the Ottoman Empire, a process that culminated with the founding of the modern Greek state in 1830. Part of this process was a rediscovery of the music of the Byzantine Greeks from the time before the Ottoman conquest in 1453. Petros Bereketis, head cantor of the Church of Saint Constantine in Istanbul in the middle 1700s (no one knows his exact dates) fused 13th and 14th century Byzantine music with some more modern ideas to form a gorgeous chant to the Virgin Mary. The chant is in eight parts, each one based on a different mode of Byzantine music. The lyrics are meaningless syllables. The chorus is all male, with the basses providing a quasi-drone. Despite the occasional dramatic moment, the music is inherently static, like much chant. The fascination is not so much in the melody as in listening for the chord changes and the shimmering, atmospheric blending of the voices. Occasionally, a tenor has a solo part (as in the chant in the first plagal mode) and his vibrato and stylized quavering can be interesting to follow, seemingly the only improvisation allowed in a strictly defined form. The overall effect is a bit like Russian chorus, but more slowed down. The other, more obscure but more accurate, comparison is to the music of the era immediately after the Ottoman conquest revived by Christodoulos Halaris. Obviously this disc is for a specialized, even scholarly audience, but fans of chant or trance music might find it of interest. ~ Kurt Keefner

Product Details

Release Date:	11/12/2002
Label:	Ocora Records (France)
UPC:	0794881687923
Rank:	204844

Tracks

1. Grand Chant Octotonal ¿¿ la Vierge~Holy Virgin, Mother of God, 1st mode
2. Grand Chant Octotonal ¿¿ la Vierge~Hail to Thee who art full of grace, 2nd mode
3. Grand Chant Octotonal ¿¿ la Vierge~Mary, the Lord is with Thee, 3rd mode
4. Grand Chant Octotonal ¿¿ la Vierge~Blessed art Thou among women, 4th mode
5. Grand Chant Octotonal ¿¿ la Vierge~Blessed art Thou, 1st plagal mode
6. Grand Chant Octotonal ¿¿ la Vierge~The fruit of thy womb, 2nd plagal mode
7. Grand Chant Octotonal ¿¿ la Vierge~For Thou hast borne, so-called "heavy" mode
8. Grand Chant Octotonal ¿¿ la Vierge~The Savior of our souls, 4th plagal mode

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Vassilikos Ensemble   Primary Artist
Ensemble Theodore Vassilikos   Primary Artist,Ensemble
Theodore Vassilikos   Primary Artist

Technical Credits

Aris Fakinos   Liner Notes,Producer
Pascal Besnard   Editing,Montage
Jocelyne Pruvot   Editing,Montage
Vassilikos Ensemble   Performer
Petros Bereketis (Peter the Sweet)   Composer
Pierre Toureille   Collection
Agnes Wargnier   Engineer,Recording
Michael Vogel   Translation,Liner Note Translation