New “Orthodox Church Music” Journal Published by PSALM
The newly-revived PSALM organization (the Pan-Orthodox Society for the Advancement of Liturgical Music) is proud to announce the publication of the premier issue of Orthodox Church Music (OCM), a semi-annual journal dedicated to various topics of interest to church musicians, clergy, choir members, and anyone interested in Orthodox liturgical music. OCM is pan-Orthodox in its orientation, exploring choral and chant music from various musical traditions, including Slavic and Byzantine. OCM exists in a digital format on the PSALM website and is available to all members of PSALM; it is also available as a limited-run print journal by subscription. Memberships are $40 for the digital access, and $60 for the digital+print version.
The inaugural issue includes articles by the late Fr. Sergei Glagolev about liturgical music for missions; a first-ever historical account of the rich legacy of choirmaster Evgeny Ivanovich Evetz (1905-1990), many of whose followers have been active in North America, by Nicholas and Michelle Ganson; an exploration of ways in which Orthodox music can be enriched with material drawn from African-American spirituals, by Jaime Rall; a highly practical article dealing with phrase connections in recitative chant by journal editor Vladimir Morosan; and an eloquent rallying cry from former PSALM Executive Director Valerie Yova, calling church musicians towards the pursuit of musical beauty in worship and the models that can help choirs to get there.
The public website, open to all, features news of various musical events of interest in the realm of church music, as well as liturgical music job postings. By signing up to be a PSALM member subscribers will receive other valuable benefits, including access to an online member directory of Orthodox parishes and church musicians; access to archival issues of PSALM Notes (a newsletter published between 1996 and 2008), which is full of valuable and insightful articles; musical and media archives; and a music showcase for new liturgical compositions and arrangements.
The journal is under the editorship of Dr. Vladimir Morosan, together with Dn. Dr. Harrison Russin of St. Vladimir’s Seminary, and Dr. Kurt Sander, eminent composer and Music Program Head at Northern Kentucky University, as Associate Editors. “The year 2025 is an exciting time to be an Orthodox church musician,” writes Morosan in the lead editorial. “The all-important conversation about advancing liturgical music in Orthodox North America has, in some respects, been on hold for the last decade or two. The Editors of Orthodox Church Music express the hope that our readership will, once again, restart that conversation, pointing the way to future generations of church musicians as we build our community of excellence and strive for the greater glory and beauty of Divine Worship.”
To subscribe to Orthodox Church Music please visit https://orthodox-psalm.org. PSALM, Inc., is a non-profit 501c3 organization.