One of
the many advantages of singing in an orthodox choir such as we have
here at Holy Trinity is the exposure to the musical styles of different
cultures. While at the same time following a time-honored course developed
over centuries and refined as recently as 1955 by a Greek arranger:
George Anastassiou; over the years the choir has incorporated and
continues to add the music of various composers. Presently we mainly
use his choir-book for the Apolytikion and Kontakion along with the
arrangements of Anna Gallos for most of the Liturgical Hymns.
One of
the places in the Liturgy where variety is possible is in the Cherubic
Hymns. These hymns are proclamations of the congregation's essential
role as earthly representatives of the Angels in their acknowledgement
and praise of the Lord. The musical styling of the Russian composer
Bortniansky is as different from the arrangement of George Anastassiu
as the piece by Maragos (another Greek composer) is from a straightforward
arrangement in tone 8 (one of eight different tones which repeat,
one after another, over the course of the church's liturgical year).
The selection
of a particular Cherubic version made in relationship to the selections
for (among others): The Hymn at the Consecration (Se Imnumen), The
Thrice Holy Hymn (Trisagion), and the different Responses help to
form an atmosphere in which the Divine Liturgy can be experienced
differently for different times in the yearly progression of the church
calendar.