Coptic Chant at the Metropolitan Museum of Art!

In a historic event and for the first time, Coptic chant was prayerfully performed today in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City during the press preview of the fantastic Africa & Byzantium exhibit. What an immense honor!?

We are extremely thankful to the The Metropolitan Museum of Art, for inviting us to share our beloved heritage and spiritual tradition. As Fr. Justin of St. Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai relayed to us, “We hope that many Coptic people will come and enjoy this exhibit because this is their heritage!” Thinking on this further, a few of our choir members shared that it is time that we Copts took a seat at the table in appreciation and dedication to our Orthodox tradition; we ought to invest in the divine gift that is the Church. Seeing our spiritual inheritance on display in such a manner—icons and manuscripts and artifacts that we had only dreamed of, and rendering our music for the world to embrace, created a window from which the early centuries were brought into the present.

The repertoire chosen embodies four hymns, chanted now primarily during Holy Week in the Coptic Rite (though a number of them have their roots in the standard liturgy of the hours or the psalter); these hymns exemplify fundamental characteristics found in Coptic chant. The musical sequence in today’s performance will bring you along the paschal journey of Christ from His entrance into Jerusalem, to His crucifixion and burial, culminating in His harrowing of Hades and resurrection from the dead. Among this collection of chants, you will find texts common to both the Byzantine and Coptic traditions, as well as those unique to the Coptic heritage; their music, however, is strictly Coptic. While the extant documentation containing these hymns dates back to the 14th century, it is likely that they existed much earlier, since written records of Coptic liturgical manuals are mostly unavailable prior to this time period.

Reflecting on the events of this weekend, I couldn’t be more humbled to have worked with such a group of talented individuals who have quickened the fire in me. We felt God’s hand with us, providing us joy and grace, and we pray that you also feel His hand through this performance.