Barseg Tchon Armenian composer-hymnographer, musician-theorist of the 7th century. Country: Armenia

1. Commission to Compile Armenian Hymns
2. Attempt at an Eight-Voice System
3. Standardization of Church Music

Barsegh Tchon: The Armenian Hymnodist and Music Theorist of the 7th Century

Barsegh Tchon, an Armenian composer and music theorist, lived in the 7th century in Ani, a city ruled by the Kamsarakan princes. He served as the abbot of the Depavank Monastery.

Commission to Compile Armenian Hymns

In 645, Catholicos Nerses III Ishkhanci, with the consent of the Dvin Synod, commissioned Tchon to collect and canonize Armenian spiritual hymns known as ktsurds. This marked a significant milestone in the history of the Armenian and Eastern churches.

Tchon's collection, titled "Tchonynt'ir" (Collected by Tchon), became a repository of ktsurds. Over time, it was expanded to include other "sharakan" hymns.

Attempt at an Eight-Voice System

Historical accounts attribute to Tchon the first attempt at creating an eight-voice system for ktsurds. At the time, Armenia possessed a vast repertoire of canonical hymns, but singers from different dioceses often lacked uniformity in their texts.

Standardization of Church Music

To address this issue, Catholicos Nerses appointed "wise men" to standardize liturgical music throughout the Armenian Church. According to Kirakos Gandzaketsi, Barsegh Tchon was entrusted with the task of reviewing and selecting the best hymns. These hymns have since become the basis of the Armenian church's musical tradition.