www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall organ use in ECC OCC churches

I've never seen an organ in a Greek Catholic Church, but then, I've only been going to them since 1996. I doubt that the Ruthenians ever did, because of their strong tradition of congregational singing--at least, nobody I know has ever said anything about it.

That said, I've seen other things done in Greek Catholic liturgies that would stand your hair on end, but we have no monopoly on that.

The Maronite church in my area uses a synthesizer that sounds like an organ.

Or at least they did, I haven't been there in a few years.

They use it to accompany the priest, cantor, and congregation during the chanted portions of the liturgy. There was no "soloing" like you might hear in a Latin church.

I don't know if it is proper or not for their tradition, but it did add to perceived reverence.

Oh, and I just noticed that you wanted to know about other instruments, including bells.

At my UGCC parish, the altar boys will sometimes ring bells during the Theotokion. I don't know what decides what days they will use them and what days they don't.

The bells may actually be chimes; since they're behind they iconostasis, I haven't seen them in person.

I guess there is less use of organs in the Maronite churches in the US than I thought there was. This article says [maroniteinstitute.org]


I think the Coptics use similar percussion instruments. I don't think we have anyone in the forum from Ge'ez Catholic parishes.

Thanks for the responses re: use of organs, or other instruments, in the ECCs and OCCs. The deadline for the next issue is May 26 so I will use any information I get before then when I write a letter to the editor.

I grew up at a parish of the Eparchy of Passaic. We had an organ, which was used every week. Boy was I glad when that finally ended, probably around the year 2000.

The only things I've ever seen the Copts out here use are finger cymbals.

Organs were first introduced into Orthodox worship in the Ionian Islands, which were under Venetian domination from the time of the Latin Empire (1204).

Though the (basically) diatonic nature of organ tuning did not comfortably fit with Byzantine modal chant, the Greeks (prodded on by their Latin overlords) persevered, and this situation continues to this day.

Organs were introduced into the churches of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of North & South America under the administration of Archbishop (later Patriarch) Athenagoras, who for eight years served as bishop in the Ionian Islands just prior to his appointment to the North American see. It is said that he believed their use would bring the Greek Orthodox closer to Protestant (most especially, Episcopalian) practices and make Orthodox services less strange to the heterodox. Another consideration may have been that use of the organ did not require the kind of intensive training required to produce a skilled psalti for each parish. It was under his governance that stationary pews also were installed on a widespread basis.

Fr David Straut

Organ music was officially sanctioned in the Syriac and Syro-Malankara Catholic/Orthodox traditions by a Syriac Orthodox Patriarch in the 18th Century. This has now evolved to allowing keyboards (with all kinds of unnecessary rhythms) and other musical instruments - for the most part they compliment the congregation and the priest, sometimes, depending on the lead musician it goes way, way overboard...

I don't know for certain whether we have any members from the Ge'ez Tradition, but certainly there are none who post.

However, I can offer that the Ethiopians and Eritreans utilize drums, prayer sticks (staffs raised and lowered to strike the ground - to maintain rhythm), several types of flutes, cymbals, sistra (a metal rattle), baganas (a wooden, stringed, harp-like instrument), masenqos (1 stringed violins), lyres, and various other stringed instruments.

They also employ the malaket, a type of trumpet or bugle used to call the faithful to prayer. However, I don't believe that it is ever used during the Holy Liturgy itself.

Many years,

Neil