Today, the Orthodox Church assigns a serious role to church singing. Our worship and church choral singing are directly related. With its help, the Word of God is preached, which forms a special liturgical language (together with temple tunes). Church singing is usually divided into two types: unison (monophonic) and polyphonic. The latter implies the division of votes into parts, and the first - the performance by all choristers of the same melody. In Russian churches, as a rule, they sing in parts.
Disagreement
In the VIII century, eight singing and melodic systems (osmoglasie) unite, which comprehensively affect the intellectual and emotional perception of a believer who turns to God with prayer. By the fourteenth century, this system had acquired such a large-scale character that it can only be compared with icon painting of the same period and with the depth of prayerful asceticism. Theology, church singing, an icon and a prayer feat are components of a single whole.
Replacing osmosis
The heyday of church singing in the 17th century coincided with the beginning of its crowding out of secular art. The system of church osmosis was replaced by brief tunes on a religious theme. Orthodox religious ascetics believe that church singing without consent is impossible.
Church singing
But the Orthodox Church has a sufficient number of musical publications and manuscripts. She has at her disposal the routine of church singing, which includes the whole circle of liturgical singing. It combines the main chants of Kiev, Greek and famous songs. There are several ways to perform stichera, in particular, simple and festive. All musical church manuscripts are a document of Church Tradition, which is considered in Orthodox circles as the very first word in controversial issues.
The development of church singing
According to the documents of church tradition, it is easy to trace how church singing developed. Any art has its beginning and flowering. Many religious Orthodox figures today believe that the style of modern icon painting and church singing is just a profanation of liturgical art. In their opinion, this Western style does not correspond (either formally or spiritually) to Church Tradition.
Singing groups
The groups involved in church singing can be of three types. The first type is professional singers, but not church ones. The second - has a composition of church people, but at best they have relative hearing and voice. The rarest kind of musical collective is a professional church choir. The group of the first type prefers to perform complex works, but the ecclesiastical nature of this music by such singers is, as a rule, indifferent, unlike those people who enter the temple for prayer.
Some priests prefer the second type of choir, but often along with the musical unprofessionalism of such singers, its primitive repertoire is also depressing.
However, it is encouraging that the groups of the third kind are increasingly turning to the performance of works composed by synodal authors, and then even to the monastery tunes.