Ru
EnD. Korotkikh (hieromonk Paul), N. Denisov
Stichera of the Trinity Version: new research materials
The article notes that the study of the creative work of the schools of Old Russian Ecclesiastical singing of the 16th and 17th centuries appears to be a promising direction for modern musicological research. This is confirmed by the so-called Trinity Version – a special variant of the Pentecost stichera that originated in the Monastery of St. Sergius of Radonezh. This Version is not a comprehensive phenomenon, similar to Putevoy or Demestvennyj chants. Therefore, the five stichera of the cycle sung by the Trinity masters, based on formal criteria, can hardly claim any significant place in the history of Ecclesiastical singing of this period. However, the dissemination of this Version was not limited to Northern Russian cities and monasteries, as evidenced by chant manuscripts created in the vicinity of Lvov and in what is now Belarus. Such facts clearly demonstrate the importance of the chant tradition of Trinity Monastery and reveal the cultural ties of Muscovite Rus at the turn of the 16th and 17th centuries. According to modern facts, the Trinity Version of the studied stichera was first fixed in writing in the 1570s. The selection of canticles for the creation of this chant version likely coincided with the main monastic feast in honor of the Holy Trinity. This work positions new copies of stichera and substantiates their attribution to the Trinity Version. The main types of secret formulas embodying one of the characteristic melodic turns of the Trinity Version are documented, and some deviations from the corresponding marker are described in detail. Based on the research undertaken, a preliminary taxonomy of the encountered fonts is constructed, and the internal connections between the elucidated copies are examined. This provides the necessary basis for establishing the genesis of specific Trinity formulas.
Key words
Old Russian singing art, Ecclesiastical Chant schools of the 16th–17th centuries, Trinity Version, Znamenny chant, Sticheron.
For citation
Korotkikh D. (hieromonk Paul), Denisov N. Stichera of the Trinity Version: new research materials. In: South-Russian Musical Anthology. 2026. No. 2. Pp. 125–139.
