Congratulations, Fall 2020 MCI Students!

The following students have successfully completed MCI Online courses in the second half of 2020.

The Plainchant of the Byzantine Catholic Church
Mark Adinolfi
Brandon Barker
David Boney
Gregg Buczkowski
Sherrill Franklin
Christopher Gerzano
Katrina Holt
Michael Komishock
Aidan Medcalf
Sarah Medcalf
Gregory Puhak
Mark Venkov
Mark Worhatch
Millie Woryk

Introduction to Liturgy
Gregg Buczkowski
Benjamin Cafeo
Loretta Fernández
Elizabeth Freiberg
Christopher Genzano
Tiphaine Lamb
Sarah Medcalf
Natalie Popiel
Gregory Puhak
Theresa Szatkowski
Cyndee Zbylut

Introduction to Church Singing
Loretta Fernández
Elizabeth Freiberg
Mary Hendricks
Kyle Holdridge
Lidija Pašo

Reading in Church
Elizabeth Freiberg
Dennis Zitny

Introduction to the Divine Liturgy
Elizabeth Freiberg
Lidija Pašo

Introduction to the Eight Tones
Gregory Puhak

The Liturgical Year
Michelle Rubush

The Divine Liturgy
Mary Hendricks
Gregory Puhak
Olivia Whitlock

The Office of Vespers
Gregory Puhak

From Pascha to All Saints
Sherril Franklin

Services for the Living
Susan Kopko
Olivia Whitlock
Patricia Yamrick

Hierarchical Services and Reader Services
Susan Kopko
Julia Revilakova
Andrea Riley
Adrienne Terleck
Patricia Yamrick

Services for the Departed
Susan Kopko
Judith Walsh

Services of Christmas and Theophany
Susan Kopko
Judith Walsh

For more information, go to  https://metropolitancantorinstitute.org/blog/classes


Congratulations, Spring 2020 MCI Students!

The following students have successfully completed MCI Online courses in the first half of 2020.

The Plainchant of the Byzantine Catholic Church
Andrew Colvin
Carol Donlin
Thomas Donlin
Loretta Fernandez
Elizabeth Freiberg
Mary Hendricks
Lawrence Lattuca
Larry Leitzel
Denise Maslowski
Julia Revilakova
Amy Seyfried
Anthony Stoeppel
Theresa Szatkowski
Olivia Whitlock
Patricia Yamrick

Introduction to Liturgy
Joseph Anderson
Ryan Bjorgaard
Michael Booth
Michael Bracelin
Chris Cain
Fr John Congdom
Bethany Doyle
Lisa Edwards
Gail Hanscom
Katrina Holt
Aidan Medcalf
Keith Nissen
Andrew Novotny
Séamus Ó Fianghusa
Sean Pyne
Anthony Stoeppel
Millie Woryk
Dennis Zitny

Introduction to Church Singing
Lisa Edwards
Corey Knick
Michael Komishock
Gregory Puhak
Olivia Whitlock

Introduction the Typikon
Ryan Bjorgaard
Corey Knick
Anthony Stoeppel

Reading in Church
Robert Dillon

Introduction the Divine Liturgy
Corey Knick

Introduction to the Eight Tones
Sam Schroetke

The Liturgical Year
Judith Walsh

The Divine Liturgy
Judith Walsh

The Office of Vespers
Julia Revilakova
Sam Schroetke

Mastering the Eight Tones
Julia Revilakova
Sam Schroetke
Judith Walsh

The Great Fast and Holy Week
Sherill Franklin
Susan Kopko
Julia Revilakova
Patricia Yamrick

From Pascha to All Saints
Julia Revilakova
Patricia Yamrick

Services for the Living
Julia Revilakova

For more information, go to  https://metropolitancantorinstitute.org/blog/classes.  All classes are free of charge through July 31.

Paschal Troparion, 1977

Christ is risen!

Dear Cantors – and anyone who would LIKE to be a cantor:

Please sit down and listening to the following recording of the singing of the Paschal troparion and kontakion, as sung in 1977 at St. Mary’s Greek Catholic Church, Nesquehoning, PA. The celebrant is Fr. Basil Boysak; the cantor is John Katchen (whose wife Helen is singing alto; Helen died last week, on Pascha. Please pray for her repose in the place of the just.)

Why am I asking you to listen to this recording?  It is not because it is technically “perfect”; the cantor swoops and slides in a way that can be a bit disconcerting (even if traditional), and I always tell students of prostopinije to hit the notes cleanly.  It’s not because everyone is singing with choir-like precision, because they’re not.  Und so weiter, und so fort.

But the cantor’s voice is leading the congregation in prayer.  He is plenty loud enough to be heard, strong but not bellowing or hectoring the congregation. His vocal  resonance carries through the church, and allows everyone else to blend.

You can hear harmonies throughout – alto and tenor are present, several different singers cooperating and clearly listening to one another. The result, as Johann Gardner described the inter-war singing in Europe, is one of “extraordinary power.”

It is also worth noting that the cantor is singing a strong baritone, allowing the other parts to work well together. While some (not me) would argue that men make better cantors than women, the problem is rather than some cantors, men and women, simply sing too high to achieve the kind of effect we hear in this parish recording.

Finally, this shows why cantorisms like added notes in a melodic pattern come into being: the singing is slow enough that the added notes in the troparion keep the sound moving strongly without needing to swell and descrescendo (something that is hard to do when a church is packed). If anyone in the congrgegation sings without the added “grace notes”, it sound just fine also, so there is no need for anyone to learn these cantorisms: they’re just….  there.

May Christ bless your singing this Pascha.

Making the Grade: Final MCI graduate under the “old” program

From 2001 to 2014, the Metropolitan Cantor Institute held Saturday chant classes in Pittsburgh, covering a different topic at each class.  Over a multi-year rotation, cantors learned  necessary skills, and received a certificate for finishing the full course of study.  Eventually, we added an in-person “final exam” in the form of a cantored Divine Liturgy at which an MCI instructor could see, comment on, and “sign off” that a student had in fact learned the skills we tried to teach.

So it is with great happiness that I can congratulate Mary Benedict, cantor of Saints Peter and Paul Byzantine Catholic Church in Erie, PA.  Mary is the last cantor to complete the “old” MCI program, having regularly driven to Pittsburgh to attend classes, and completing her final examination in 2019.

Here is a list of graduates of the Metropolitan Cantor Institute program. As we move from occasional classroom courses to online, year-round education for cantors, I would like to recognize all those cantors and cantor-students who traveled to the Byzantine Catholic Seminary throughout the fall, winter, and spring to learn the art of church singing and chant leadership.

2005  / 2006
Marylyn Barone
Delcine Caddy
John Glegyak
Thomas Marco
Sharon Mech
George Mihalick
Stephen Petach
Mary Caryl Planiczki
Steven Puluka
Barbara Sowko
Henry Zolyak

2007
Mary Frances Zadzilko
Nicholas J. Nagrant
Diane Ryan Oravecz

2008
Jeff Mierzejewski
Michael Oravecz
Ann Pawluszka

2011
Saundra Frankowski
Marilyn Hertenstein

2016
Tom Rodack

2019
Mary Benedict

(and if you know anyone who should be on this list but isn’t, please add their name below in the comments!)

Finally, I would like to thank J. Michael Thompson, first director of the MCI, who put together this multiyear program and saw it become a reality.

Congratulations, 2019 MCI Students!

The following students have successfully completed MCI Online courses in 2019.

Introduction to Liturgy
David Boney
Sidney Cline
Lawrence Coleman
Steve Doucet
Stephen Farlow
A Gerling
Stephen Hilgendorf
Gregory Hrinda
Diane Hvasta
Michael Katalenich
Seraphima Kemner
Sophia Kemner
Corey Knick
Nicholas Mataya
Jacob Moylan
Scott Romanoski
Sam Schroetke
Naomi Sweetman
Olivia Whitlock
William Wilson
Patricia Yamrick

Introduction to Church Singing
Michael Katalenich
Sam Schroetke
Russell Ward

Introduction to the Typikon
Gregory Hrinda
Michael Katalenich
Jacob Moylan
Scott Romanoski
Olivia Whitlock
Patricia Yamrick

Reading in Church
Robert Dillon

Introduction to the Divine Liturgy
Robert Dillon
Maria McKay
Mike Schulz
Colin Ventralla
Judith Walsh

Introduction to the Eight Tones
David Hennessy
Michelle Rubush
Ron Somich
Susan Tate
Colin Ventralla
Judith Walsh

The Liturgical Year (new class)
Sherill Franklin
Susan Kopko
Sue Ann Rudolphy
Amy Seyfried

The Divine Liturgy
Sue Ann Rudolphy

The Office of Vespers
Sherill Franklin
Judith Walsh

Mastering the Eight T0nes
Sherill Franklin

The Great Fast and Holy Week (new class)
Sue Ann Rudolphy
Andrea Riley
Amy Seyfried

From Pascha to All Saints (new class)
Sue Ann Rudolphy
Andrea Riley
Amy Seyfried

Services for the Living
Sue Ann Rudolphy

Hierarchical and Reader Services
Matthew Minerd

Services for the Departed (new class)
Robert Bartz
Sherill Franklin
Mary Hendricks
Steve Petach
Milan Revilak
Julia Revilakova
Andrea Riley
Sue Ann Rudolphy
Amy Seyfried
Patricia Yamrick

Services of Christmas and Theophany (new class)
Matthew Minerd
Julia Revilakova
Andrea Riley
Sue Ann Rudolphy
Amy Seyfried
Patricia Yamrick

Congratulations to all!  For more about MCI Online classes in 2020, see here

(By the way, the classes page now includes the total number of students who have completed each class.)

Changes to MCI music in 2019

It’s been twelve full years since the new Divine Liturgy books were published and distributed, and fifteen years since the MCI began regularly distributing music for liturgical services.  With that in mind, I am planning on making a few changes in the coming year.

Communion Hymns – starting in 2005, the MCI distributed music for liturgical Communion Hymn of the day using a full assortment of the various Cherubic Hymn melodies, in order to help cantors and congregations learn them.  But we are long past that point, and so in the New Year, the MCI will only print the TEXT of the Communion Hymn(s) of the day, allowing the  cantor free choice of which melody to use. The exception for now will be a few feast days where the green book has a very specific seasonal melody to use; for now, these will be left in the propers.

Remember that the Cantor’s Companion has a table of ALL the Communion Hymns, and where they can be found in the Divine Liturgies book to each of the different Cherubic Hymn melodies.  You can also use this handout.

Vespers – the current MCI Vespers books were prepared in 2005-2006, and don’t always match the texts, music and rubrics in  our 2007 Divine Liturgies book and 2010 Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts book.  In the coming year, ALL the MCI Vespers books will be getting a much needed revision to match official texts and  correct various typos and infelicities which have been noted over the years.  Stay tuned!

The Hymnal Project – this will continue through 2019, and with luck a draft will go to the Music Commission next Fall.  Watch the blog!

The Harmonization Project – as part of our work toward chant and church music revitalization, in January we will be launching a project to make available harmonized (3- and 4-part) settings of plain chant and spiritual songs, along with materials to help teach and learn choral singing in church.

New music – there is at least some music which we might fruitfully introduce, now that most parishes are used to what is in our Divine Liturgies books (after ten years, I can’t call them new!).  For example, there are settings of the Cherubic Hymn into English which might be added to our repertoire, as well as complete collections of all the Communion Hymns set to each melody. This will probably be a project for later in the year, but I would welcome your thoughts and suggestions.

Online classes – these will continue.  The introductory courses in liturgy and church singing can be taken for free, and I am adding one in the history of our chant.  The remaining courses follow a regular schedule, and can be completed in two years from beginning to end, at a cost of about $35  per month.  Classes on reading in church, the liturgical year, and music for the Great Fast start on January 7.  See the classes page for more information.

As you can see, we have a lot going on – but the goal here is the glorification of God through the singing and worship in our parishes.  Christ is born!

Intro to Church Singing is now free

As of November 4, the MCI Online class Introduction to Church Singing can be taken for free by all cantors, clergy, and parishioners of Byzantine Catholic parishes in the United States. (Non-members can take the class for $75.) This class teaches the basics for singing in church – musical sound, fundamentals of singing and reading music, and how to lead basic responses used in all services. Recommended for anyone who wants to learn our plain chant!

The course itself has been somewhat reorganized, with the addition of a new teaching song for the degrees of the scale, a full set of voice training videos, and new material in the final week on chant harmonization.

You can request an ID at https://metropolitancantorinstitute.org/blog/online at any time and sign up.   (Offer is for members of the Byzantine Catholic Church in the US;  for others, tuition is $75.)  If there is someone in your parish who would like to learn to sing our plain chant, please encourage them to try this course out!

In the past, we had some e-mail problems with the Archeparchy’s web server provider.  So if you previously requested an ID, try logging in. If you have questions or difficulties, write me directly at mci@archpitt.org.

One request: if you have an ID, or get one, please update your profile entry with your parish name in the form “<name”, <city> <state>” – for example, “St. Mary’s, Morgantown WV.”  If you just enter “St. John the Baptist” is makes it quite hard for me to tell where you actually are!

MCI Summer School 2018

OK, so I just realized we never published a wrap-up of the 2018 summer school for cantors (July 23-27) – here it is!

Monday and Tuesday

The first two days were for our new cantors only. We covered the basics of singing:

For the first time, we were able to video-record each lesson by our voice teacher, Shawn Daly, and match them up to the printed materials we use for the online class.

Every day also included voice lessons for each student, and the celebration of Compline. On Tuesday evening, we started on the basics of leading chant instead of just singing it.

Wednesday

This was the hinge day in the week: the last day for the beginning students, and the first day for the advanced students, with shared classes between the two groups.  We opened with the Divine Liturgy and breakfast, then covered:

  • Learning resources for cantors
  • Vocal articulation: making our singing clear and understandable
  • Discussion: Where do we sing in church?
  • Singing in harmony (using the Akathist hymn)
  • Dealing with problems in plain chant leadership

After Vespers, we had supper together at a local restaurant, and said good-bye to the beginning students.

Thursday and Friday

These two days were for current serving cantors. Classes included:

  • Singing the Hours and Compline
  • Voice lessons: Resonance (achieving a good vocal sound)
  • An update on the status of our liturgical and chant books
  • Singing Hierarchical Services
  • What to do when the bishop comes (with Fr. Valerian Michlick)
  • Prayer for Cantors

We also celebrated Great Vespers for the feast of St. Pantaleimon.

We had a total of seven students, and look forward to having more next year!  Many thanks to Saints Cyril and Methodius Byzantine Catholic Seminary in Pittsburgh for accommodating the program; it was particularly good to be able to accommodate both male and female students in private rooms at the seminary throughout the week.

New articles on the MCI website: Fall 2018

With the completion of the classes on The Liturgical Year and Hierarchical and Reader Services, the following articles on the MCI website have been added or revised:

The Liturgical Year
September
October
November
December
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August

Hierarchical services
The Mystery of Priesthood
Reader Services
The Hours
Typika
Crowning

Moleben
Akathist

Singing the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy
Singing the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy
Singing the Daytime Hours
Singing the Service of Typika
Singing the Wedding Service with Divine Liturgy

Questions, corrections, and suggestions are welcome!  All MCI Online are enabled for guest access (you only have to register if you want to do the coursework and receive feedback and assistance with  your singing):

http://mci.archpitt.org/classes

Congratulations, Spring 2018 MCI Students!

The following students have successfully completed MCI Online courses in the first half of 2018.

Introduction to Liturgy
Robert Bartz
Danielle Bates
John Ference
Joseph Grayeske
David Hennessy
Michael Komishock
Deirdre Manasterski
Maria McKay
Luke Potts
Mark Stachowiak
Mark Tamisiea
Judith Walsh

Introduction to the Typikon
Robert Bartz
Robert Dillon
joseph Grayeske
David Hennessy
Michael Komishock
Sue Ann Rudolphy
Colin Ventrella
Judith Walsh

Introduction to Church Singing
Robert Dillon
David Hennessy
Colin Ventralla

Reading in Church
Andrea Riley
Sue Ann Rudolphy

Introduction to the Divine Liturgy
Sue Ann Rudolphy

The Divine Liturgy
Sherill Franklin
Susan Kopko
Andrea Riley
Amy Seyfried

The Office of Vespers
Samuel Popiel
Sue Ann Rudolphy
Angela Sedun

Mastering the Eight T0nes
Samuel Popiel
Angela Sedun

Services for the Living
Andrea Riley
Amy Seyfried

Congratulations to all!