Musical particularities in Paul Constantinescu's “Oratorios”

Abstract

Paul Constantinescu's efforts to process and draw attention to the potential of the Romanian Byzantine monody would reach their pinnacle in his two masterpieces that belong to the vocal-symphonic genre: “The Passion and Resurrection” Byzantine Easter Oratorio (1946-1948), and “The Nativity” - Byzantine Christmas Oratorio (1947), the same works that would earn him the title of “father of Romanian Byzantinism.” These works represent, beyond the equanimity, sobriety, and humanity of their musical expression, the materialization of a brilliant creative enterprise, set to realize a double cultural-musical symbiosis between musical art and the Byzantine church chants on the one hand and between the Byzantine musical tradition of the East and the European musical culture on the other hand, with the well-defined goal to bring the man closer to his Creator through music.