Syrian Poetry and music notation System
Syria was one of the first countries to be Christianized. Three major forms of Syriac poetry are:
Memra. A spoken poetical sermon in lines of five, seven or twelve syllables.
Madrashe/madrasha. A strophic song like poem. The madrasha is sung by a soloist; at the end the choir responds with the same phrase.
Sogitha. A dramatic poem. Unlike the madrasha, it is sung by two soloist and two choirs.
Besides these three major forms of Syrian hymnography, smaller forms existed such as:
Qala. These poems consist of several stanzas but no refrain.
Enjane. These Poems were inserted in between the verses of Psalms.
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Syrian Ecphonetic Notation
The ecphonetic notation system was developed and established by Joseph Huzaja. He was one of the greatest Nestorian hymnographers. However the term ecphonetic notation was coined by J. Tzetzes. This notation system was used to indicate dynamics, pitch, and transitions. Some examples of the signs are:
Here’s an example of some of the signs in the text.
The section of the chapter that focuses solely on the ecphonetic notation system was brief. It did not explain the role of each sign. The fact that we use a different notation system today, would make it challenging to understand the details of this type of notation system. It was developed and established in the early middle ages, an era that did not have recording devices as we do today. Which makes it impossible to gain a true understanding of what this notation system was like. Although there were indications of pitch, dynamics and so on, all these indications were most likely relative.
Questions
What are your views on the ecphonetic notation system?
Is poetry incorporated in the religious ceremonies of your church? If yes. Explain the way in which these poems are presented.
References
Apel, W. (1960).Harvard dictionary of music. Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard University Press.
Syriac Chanting lessons at Malankara Syriac Orthodox Theological Seminary, retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkzDPwq4PfA on December 29, 2016.
Wellesz, E. (1955) Early Christian Music. In Hughes, D.A (Ed.), The new oxford history of music II early medieval music up to 1300 (pp.1-13).London. Oxford University Press.
