Strictly speaking,
Byzantine Chant is the sacred
chant of Christian Churches following the Orthodox rite. This tradition, encompassing the Greek-speaking world, developed in
Byzantium from the establishment of its capital, Constantinople, in 330 until
its fall in 1453. It is undeniably of composite origin, drawing on the artistic and technical productions of the classical age, on
Jewish music, and inspired by the monophonic vocal music that evolved in the early Christian cities of Alexandria, Antioch, and Ephesus. In the
Orthodox Church today, many churches use Byzantine Chant as their primary musical tradition, including the Churches of
Constantinople,
Alexandria,
Antioch,
Jerusalem,
Romania,
Serbia,
Greece, and
Cyprus.
The Byzantine chant scale consists of seven notes:
