Byzantine church singing in the studies of fr. Peter Franz Krypiakevych

Abstract

This article examines the historical path of the development of the Byzantine hymnography and sacred monody in the researcher’s works of fr. Petro Krypjakevych. An important role of the research of the Byzantine sacred hymnography is his study of its specific characteristics and the phenomen of the relations with ancient writing heritage. Church poetry played a major role in the development of the literature poetry, its images were used by many ukrainian writers of the XVI-XVII centuries, most of which in their profession were related with the Church, and, therefore, knew perfectly sacred hymnohraphy. Liturgical books also helped to a perfect knowledge of singin monody material. In the Byzantine hymnography the main place taked the Marian theme. The article analyzed the cultural complex of the existing forms of the liturgical singing tradition, defined existence of the expression among the sacred hymnohraphy. In the development of the Christian rite, the dramaturgy of the Theotokion texts is improved, the system of genres, which is combined by the common theme, is formed, the image of the Virgin gains the axiological completeness and becomes as the source of valuable norms in opposition to evil and hope for salvation. This explains the involvement of the Marian chants into all the spheres of the liturgical worship that allows recognizing the Theotokion as a cultural phenomenon, evidenced by the high emotional and intellectual concentration and communication within the syncretic filling all the rite levels. The investigated material by fr. Petro Krypjakevych reveals the continued interpretation of God Mother‘s image as the carrier of the core foundations of the human spirit that remains to be ideal in interpreting the various artistic and philosophical systems, based on manifesting the eternal valuable categories such as: love and compassion. That’s why the research of fr. Petro Krypjakevych is an important contribution to the world treasury of the recognition of the spiritual culture of humankind.