Ex Libris Ensemble & Daniil Sayapin

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Ex Libris Ensemble & Daniil Sayapin · The Ex Libris Ensemble and Daniil Sayapin are the performers of the Troparion of the Holy Trinity in the 2020 version that the course uses. Nothing about the musicians themselves is recorded in the available sources, so this entry is mainly about the tradition from which the piece comes.

Music and breakthrough

The chant belongs to Znamenny chant, the oldest form of Russian Orthodox church music. Znamenny chant is monophonic. There is no accompaniment and no chord changes: the singers follow a single melodic line, sometimes with a drone (bourdon) beneath. The melodies were written down in a notation of their own, made up of signs, the kryuki or znamena, from which the chant takes its name. The tradition arose in the Middle Ages, when Christianity spread across Kievan Rus, and is still sung in the liturgy today.

Influence

For anyone learning to listen to pop, Znamenny chant is a useful counterpart. There are no drums, no chorus and no harmony driving the piece forward. Everything depends on the line of the voice and on the text, which in the liturgy is what matters most. Anyone who sets this beside pop music hears how many choices in the modern song are not self-evident.

Listening

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  Troparion van de Heilige Drie-eenheid · Ex Libris Ensemble & Daniil Sayapin, 2020