Choral Corner | Sound and Silence

Choral Corner #35: Why doesn't our choir sing famous Orthodox concert music?

Choral masterpieces such as Sergei Rachmaninoff’s All-night Vigil are undeniably gorgeous, and can play an important evangelistic role in...

Choral Corner #30: About the ending of the Lord's Prayer — "evil one" or just "evil"?

In most American Orthodox parishes, the Lord's Prayer concludes with the phrase, "...but deliver us from the evil one." However, we...

Choral Corner #12: What does the word "Alleluia" actually mean?

"Alleluia" (sometimes spelled "Hallelujah") is Hebrew for "praise the Lord" (literally, "praise Yahweh"). This term appears frequently in...

Choral Corner #9: Why is “It is Truly Meet” occasionally replaced with another hymn?

At the Divine Liturgy, why does It is Truly Meet occasionally get replaced with something else? At the Divine Liturgy of St. John...

Choral Corner #8: What is a troparion?

A troparion (sometimes shortened to tropar; pl. troparia), is the primary hymn of a day, saint, feast or other commemoration. On each...

Choral Corner #7: What does the choir sing during clergy Communion, and why does it change so much?

It does change every week. Clergy Communion is the only point in any Orthodox service where the choir director has a large degree of...

Choral Corner #6: Why Don't All Orthodox Use a Single Tonal System?

Why don't all Orthodox choirs use Byzantine chant, which is the original chant of the Church? This is a vast topic more appropriate for a...

Choral Corner #5: What is a tone?

Orthodox liturgical music operates in a system of eight tones; most hymn texts are designated to be sung in one of them. The eight-tone...

Choral Corner #4: What is a prokeimenon?

A prokeimenon (Greek for "what is set forth") is a short series of Psalm verses that precedes a Scripture reading. At the Sunday Divine...

Choral Corner #3: Why do Orthodox choirs need to rehearse? Everyone knows the tones by heart.

Having the tones memorized is a great start, but that's precisely what it is: a start. In the Orthodox tradition, the melodies serve the...

Choral Corner #2: What about the artificial instruments mentioned in the Psalms?

The Psalter contains many references to artificial instruments, especially stringed instruments such as the lyre and psaltery (Ps. 56:9,...

Choral Corner #1: Why are there no instruments in Orthodox liturgical music?

Choral Corner is a series of short articles written for my parish bulletin, with the goal of helping everyone understand what the choir...