List of Byzantine composers

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John of Damascus (c. 675c. 749), who was a major proponent of 8th century kanōns and the supposed creator of the octoechos

The Byzantine Empire lasted from AD 395 to 1453, during which music was prominent throughout the empire.[1][n 1] Both sacred and secular music were commonplace, with sacred music frequently used in church services and secular music in many events including, ceronmonies, dramas, ballets, banquets, festivals and sports games.[2][3] However, despite its popularity, secular Byzantine music was harshly criticized by the Church Fathers.[3][n 2] Like Western contemporaries such as Léonin, Pérotin and Machaut, little information is generally known about the lives of Byzantine composers.[5]

Composers of sacred music, especially hymns and chants, are generally well documented throughout the history of Byzantine music. However, those before the reign of Justinian I are virtually unknown; the monks Anthimos, Auxentios and Timokles are said to have written troparia, but only the text to a single one by Auxentios survives.[6] The first major form was the kontakion, of which Romanos the Melodist was the foremost composer. In the late 7th century the kanōn overtook the kontakion in popularity; Andrew of Crete became its first significant composer, and is traditionally credited as the genre's originator (though modern scholars now doubt this). The kañon reached its peak with the music of John of Damascus and Cosmas of Maiuma and later Theodore of Stoudios and Theophanes the Branded in the 8th and 9th centuries respectively.[2] Composers of secular music are considerably less documented. Not until late in the empire's history are composers known by name, with Joannes Koukouzeles, Xenos Korones and Joannes Glykys as the leading figures.[3]

Like their Western counterparts of the same period, Byzantine composers were primarily men.[5] Kassia is a major exception to this; she was a prolific and important composer of sticheron hymns and the only woman whose works entered the Byzantine liturgy.[7] A few other women are known to have been composers, Thekla, Theodosia, Martha and the daughter of John Kladas (her given name is unrecorded). Only the latter has any surviving work, a single antiphon. Some Byzantine emperors are known to have been composers, such as Leo VI the Wise and Constantine VII.

Byzantine composers

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Byzantine composers
Name Lifetime Works Remarks
The death of Theodosius I in 395 causes the permanent division of the Western Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire[1]
Anthimos Template:Country data 5th century Said to have composed troparia (none survive) A monophysite[8][6]
Auxentios Template:Country data 5th century The text to a single troparion survives (attribution uncertain); said to have composed others A biography on Auxentios attributes the composition of a troparion to him[6][9][8]
Timokles Template:Country data 5th century Said to have composed troparia (none survive) [6][8]
Romanos the Melodist late 5th century – after 550 About 60 of the 85 kontakion attributed to him are considered authentic The preeminent kontakion composer of his time[10]
Kyriakos Template:Country data 6th century No works survive Contemporary of Romanos[11]
Anastasius Template:Country data 6th century No works survive A composer recorded as "Anastasius" is thought to be a 6th century Byzantine emperor, either Anastasius I Dicorus (c. 431 – 9 July 518) or Anastasios II (Died 719). Contemporary of Romanos[11]
Germanus I c. 634c. 733 Various kanōns are attributed to him If authentic, his kanōns would be earlier than those of Andrew of Crete and thus confirm Andrew is not the genre's originator[12][13]
Andrew of Crete c. 660c. 740 Hymns, primarily kanōns[14] Best known for his Great Kanōn, a 250 stanza hymn. Traditionally credited with inventing the kanōn, though modern scholars doubt this[15][12]
John of Damascus
John Damascene
c. 675c. 749 Many kanōns and troparia. Traditionally credited with inventing the octoechos, though modern scholars doubt this A close colleague of Cosmas of Maiuma[16]
Cosmas of Maiuma
Kosmas of Jerusalem
fl. early 8th century Various kanōns, sticheron, idiomelas and triōdias A close colleague of John of Damascus[17]
Stephen the Sabaite Died 807 Idiomelas in the Triodion, Kanōns [18]
Theodore the Studite 759 – 826 Various kanōns Kept a letter correspondence with Kassia[12][19]
Theophanes the Branded 775 – 845 Kanōns for saints and his brother, Theodorus. Contributed to the Parakletike[12][20]
Kassia 805/810 – 865/867 More than 50 liturgical works, primarily stichera. 26 have disputed authenticity The only woman Byzantine composer whose work is included in the Byzantine liturgy. The most important and renowned woman in Byzantine music. She had a letter correspondence with Theodore the Studite[21][22]
Joseph the Hymnographer c. 816 – 886 Various kanōns, of which 525 survive. Contributed to the Parakletike[23][24]
Joseph the Confessor Template:Country data 9th century Troparia, sticheron and kanōns [25]
Thekla Template:Country data 9th century No works survive Known to have written now lost kanōns[26]
Theodosia Template:Country data 9th century No works survive Known to have written now lost kanōns. She was an abbess who lived near Constantinople[27]
Leo VI the Wise 866 – 912 Hymns for the Great Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross Was Byzantine emperor from 886 to 912[28]
Martha Template:Country data End of the 9th century No works survive Abbess and mother of Simeon Stylites[26]
Constantine VII 905 – 959 11 exaposteilaria anastasima and 3 sticheron Was Byzantine emperor from 908 until 959 (co-emperor until 945)[29]
Nikephoros Ethikos {{country data c. 1300 flaglink/core variant = size = name = altlink = men's national floorball team altvar = floorball mw = men's

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Liturgical chants; 40 survive His works are far more stylistically conservative than those of his contemporaries[30]
Gregorios Glykys {{country data c. 1300 flaglink/core variant = size = name = altlink = men's national floorball team altvar = floorball mw = men's

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Liturgical chants; only a few survive, including a sticheron Had the post of domestikos (in a musical context meaning "first singer of the left choir")[31]
John Koukouzelis Template:Country data 1300–50 Many chants One of the most illustrious musicians of his time; known as the "second source of Greek music" (John of Damascus being the first)[32]
Xenos Korones Template:Country data 1325–50 Chants [33]
Joannes Glykys Template:Country data Late 13th century Chant and psalms Purportedly the teacher of Korones and Koukouzelis[34]
John Kladas Template:Country data 1400 Virtually every sacred genre of his time He was particularly prolific and his daughter seems to have been a composer as well[35][36]
Daughter of John Kladas Template:Country data 1400 A single antiphon is attributed to her Her given name is unknown; recorded only as the daughter of John Kladas[36][22]
Manuel Chrysaphes Template:Country data 1440–1463 A large amount of hymns, chants, kratēmata, mathēmata and anagrammatismoi among others An extremely prolific composer; John VIII Palaiologos and Constantine XI Palaiologos were patrons of his music.[37][n 3]
Janus Plousiadenos c. 1429–1500
Fall of Constantinople results in the conquest of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire in 1453

Notes

  1. Even after the Fall of Constantinople in 1453 the Byzantine musical tradition continued in the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople through figures such as Panagiotes the New Chrysaphes, Petros Bereketis, Petros Peloponnesios, and Chrysanthos of Madytos,[2][3] as well as Serbians such as Kir Stefan, Isaiah, Nikola and Kir Joakim.[4]
  2. Touliatos 2001a lists John Chrysostom, Tertullian, Cyprian, Clement of Alexandria, Gregory Nazianzen, Basil the Great, Ambrose, Augustine of Hippo and particularly Jerome as the church fathers who were vocally against secular Byzantine music
  3. He was also a noted music theorist, writing the treatise Peri tōn entheōroumenōn tē psaltikē technē kai hōn phronousi kakōs tines peri autōn which contains extensive and otherwise unknown information on contemporary Byzantine music, practice and theory.[37]

References

Citations

  1. 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Levy 2001.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Touliatos 2001a.
  4. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. 5.0 5.1 Touliatos-Banker 1984, p. 62.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. Mellas 2020, pp. 147–148.
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  9. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  11. 11.0 11.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  13. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. Mellas 2020, p. 115.
  15. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  16. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  17. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  18. Patrich 2001, p. 11.
  19. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. Patrich 2001, p. 174.
  21. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  22. 22.0 22.1 Touliatos 1996, p. 1.
  23. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  25. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. 26.0 26.1 Touliatos-Banker 1984, p. 80.
  27. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  30. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  31. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  32. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  33. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  34. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  35. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)
  36. 36.0 36.1 Touliatos-Banker 1984, p. 63.
  37. 37.0 37.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription or UK public library membership required)

Sources

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External links