Musical particularities in Paul Constantinescu's “Oratorios” Cover Image

Musical particularities in Paul Constantinescu's “Oratorios”
Musical particularities in Paul Constantinescu's “Oratorios”

Author(s): Dan Alexandru Streza
Subject(s): Fine Arts / Performing Arts, Music
Published by: Editura Universitatii Transilvania din Brasov
Keywords: Paul Constantinescu; Byzantine music; Heterophony; Resurrection; Nativity

Summary/Abstract: Paul Constantinescu's efforts to process and draw attention to the potential of the Romanian Byzantine monody would reach their pinnacle in his two masterpieces that belong to the vocal-symphonic genre: “The Passion and Resurrection” Byzantine Easter Oratorio (1946-1948), and “The Nativity” - Byzantine Christmas Oratorio (1947), the same works that would earn him the title of “father of Romanian Byzantinism.” These works represent, beyond the equanimity, sobriety and humanity of their musical expression, the materialization of a brilliant creative enterprise, set to realize a double cultural-musical symbiosis between musical art and the Byzantine church chants on the one hand and between the Byzantine musical tradition of the East and the European musical culture on the other hand, with the well-defined goal to bring the man closer to his Creator through music.

  • Issue Year: 10/2017
  • Issue No: 2-Suppl
  • Page Range: 285-298
  • Page Count: 14
  • Language: English