Българският музикален съюз и църковната музика у нас през първата половина на ХХ век
The Bulgarian Musical Union and Church music in Bulgaria in the first half of the 20th century

Summary/Abstract: The article examines the role and importance of the Bulgarian Musical Union for the development of Bulgarian church music in the first half of the 20th century. The main ideas of the Union on this subject, laid down at the time of its foundation, have been traced in their development. Congress decisions have been analysed by emphasizing the Union activity in terms of their realization – referring them to higher authorities, promoting and popularizing them in the pages of the Union press and their practical application in church music activities. The leading idea of a reform in Bulgarian church music by replacing the Еastern Orthodox monophonic singing with chants from the “Bulgarian chant” repertoire, or as it was called then “old Bulgarian church singing”, runs as a leitmotif throughout the entire activity of the Union. Engaged in various directions, Union members actively participated in collecting and researching as well as popularizing and publishing this newly discovered singing in Russia. At the same time, the idea of creating a national church singing tradition by means of writing authorial choral church compositions was advocated.

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