SSCN Voumes 1-10, 1994-2004

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter

Martyrdom text of St. Anub (or Abanoub). Its use also extends to Psalm readings in funerals, except during the Paschaltide period (the 50 days between Resurrection Sunday and the Feast of the Pentecost). Pascha II (Ar. Shami): The name of the tune indicates its probable Syriac origin. This by far is the most elaborate and difficult of all the Coptic readings. It is used in the 11 th hour of Pascha Tuesday, 3 rd hour of the Eve of Pascha Thursday, and 12 th hour of Good Friday. It is similar in tune and arrangement to the Pascha I tune except for the first Stanza which last over 15 minutes, about 10 of them are spent in reciting the single Alleluia response at its end. This tune is by far the most beautiful in Christian Sacred music. Festal I (Ar. Faraihi): This tune is reserved for the Raising of Incense during the Lord's feasts celebrated in the Church. It has a single Alleluia response in the introduction and in the Conclusion of the reading. A Choir response always follows this reading. Festal II (Ar. Faraihi). This tune is the shorter version of the Festal tune of the reading for the Liturgy Psalm reading. It is customarily used in the Lord's feasts. It differ from the Festal I tune in notes not in form or arrangement. It is also used in the Office of Matrimony. Festal III (Ar. Singari): This tune is the longer Festal tune and it is reserved for the major Lord's feasts, such as, Nativity, Epiphany, Resurrection Sunday, etc. It is distinguished from the Festal II tune in having a long response for the Introduction Alleluia, and a longer tune for the first two stanzas. The tune of the rest of the Psalm reading is the same as Festal II. The name of the tune refers to the name of an Egyptian town or village called Singar. Bright Saturday I (Pascha I-Festal III). This tune is currently practiced as simply the singing of the first two stanzas in the

Alleluia response and the third stanza having an elevated note. The Introduction is always, "Psalm of David". And they are as follows: Annual I (Ar. Sanawi): This tune is used in the Evening and Morning Raising of Incense services, preceding the morning Liturgy. There is a single Alleluia response at the Introduction and at the Conclusion. Annual II (Ar. Sanawi): This reading is similar in composition to the one above but distinct in tune. It is reserved for the Liturgy reading. It is also used for the second psalm reading on Palm Sunday Liturgy. Kiahk (Ar. Kiahki): This tune is reserved for the liturgies celebrated during the month of Kiahk in the Coptic Church from its beginning to the 27 th day of the month. It is distinguished with a long 4 Alleluia response in the Introduction and another long 3 Alleluia after the second stanza and at the Conclusion. Palm Sunday (Ar. Shaanini, or Lahn al-Salib): This tune is used only on three occasions in the Church: Palm Sunday and the two feasts of the Cross. At Palm Sunday it is used only in the Raising of Incense services, but in the Feasts of the Cross it used for the Raising of Incense as well as the Liturgy. This is very rarely recited and it is similar to the Kiahk tune in having multiple Alleluia responses in the Introduction, middle, and the Conclusion of the reading. Pascha I (Ar. Idribi). This is used during the Pascha Week in the Coptic Church. It is the most familiar to the ears of the parishioners because of its frequent use during that week, 50 times. It is a solemn tune that its reading lasts between 5 and 7 minutes. The 1 st , 2 nd , and 4 th stanzas are followed a short single Alleluia response. It is one of the more ancient tunes in the Church and expresses the mood of the church. It is named after a town called Idrib or Athribis, probably the one in Lower Egypt, which was mentioned in the

St. Shenouda Coptic Newsletter

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