Supraskie Kantyki [Supraśl Canticles] are a collection of 49 musical pieces, written for 6 male voices (treble a, treble b, tenor a, tenor b, bass a, bass b). They were created in Supraśl in the 1670s–80s. At that time, the monastery belonged to the Greek Catholic Order of Basilians. Since its inception, the Supraśl convent has been an independent monastery; it used to serve as an all Orthodox Church reference center, first for the Orthodox Christians (1500–1603) and then for the Eastern-rite Catholics – Uniates (1603–1839) of the Kyivan Metropolitanate. In the monastery’s library, relics of Slavic literature were kept; there was also a publishing office of the Basilian Fathers (1696–1803). The recording of the works featured on this album, made by the Warsaw-based DUX record label, took place in 2021 at the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic. The Choir of the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic was prepared by Prof. Violetta Bielecka, director of that distinguished institution, for which we are extremely grateful. She interpreted and arranged the reconstructed works. Thus, the Supraśl Canticles could be heard again after almost 350 years since their creation!
