Page 129 - THE ARMENIAN CHURCH_Neat

130 The Armenian Church

Music
Sacred music is a prayer in song; it is also
a poetical expression of the theology and
doctrine of the Armenian Church. As an es-
sential component of the Armenian Church's
liturgy and sacramental life, the sacred
music occupies a central place in the spirit-
uality of the Church. A unique system of
musical notation, known in Armenian as
khaz (xaz), is considered one of the most
ancient examples of Christian musical cul-
ture. It was used from the 8th to the 19th
Centuries. Because of its complex system
and the spread of European notations, the
use of the khaz notation has almost disap-
peared.
Armenian sacred music includes different
categories and types of songs: hymns (šara-
kan), melodies (mełedi), and their subdivisions,
such as ode (tał), canticle (ganj), melodic-type
mode (stełi), hagiody (srbasac‘ut‘iwn), introit
(žamamut), midday psalms (aleluk‘), attaché
(kc‘ord), and capitulum (kanonaglux). Each
of these songs has its purpose, function,
and place within the liturgy. Some of them
constitute an integral part of the Holy Mass;
others feature in daily hours, sacraments,
special feasts, and fasting days. Hymns are
based on an eight-mode system and most of
them are harmonized. There are a number
of spiritual songs, including pontifical odes,
which are not an integral part of the liturgical