he
intervals of the diatonic, enharmonic, and hard chromatic modal genres
in Byzantine music theory approximate more or less to the corresponding
intervals on an equal-tempered keyboard. The same, however, cannot be
said for the intervals of the soft chromatic genre, which is used for
the second mode and for some heirmologic settings in the fourth and
second plagal modes.
In order to clarify
interval differentiation with respect to the soft chromatic "scale,"
[*] reference here will be
made to the modern system of "cents," which divides the octave into
1200 elements; each semitone, or half step, consisting of 100 cents.
In the following
chart, the intervals of a scale with equal temperament (the standard
for most contemporary Western music) appear, measured in cents, on the
upper row. Below are the intervals of the soft chromatic scale, using
the note C as a theoretical "Νη"
("Do").
Click
here to listen to a soft chromatic chant
that
begins with the notes: G-A-B-C-B-A-G (165 KB)
A comparison of
the two sets of measurements makes evident the discrepancies between
the 2nd and 3rd, 3rd and 4th,
5th and 6th, 6th and 7th,
and 7th and 8th degrees. Most of these intervallic
disparities are insignificant, as with D-E, E-F, A-B and B-C (each has
a differentiation of 33 cents). The principal difficulty, however, lies
with the soft chromatic "A." If equated with either A-natural or A-flat
of the equal-tempered scale, either the interval G-A or A-B will diverge
from its proper value by 67 cents. It is recommended, therefore, that,
in general, the soft chromatic A be preserved as natural except when
the melody oscillates between G and A (without ascending to B), in which
case it should be flattened. Adherence to this rule (admittedly arbitrary)
will go a long way in conserving the ethos of the soft chromatic modal
genre.
When a melody modulates
to the soft chromatic in this book, the accidentals are introduced,
as indicated, in order to approximate the intervals of that genre. But
for those who desire and are able to sing the exact intervals of the
soft chromatic modal genre, the Byzantine musical symbol 
is attached to Δι
(Sol) (which is not always G) in order to identify where the alteration
begins. Note that this symbol is not used for hymns that begin in the
second mode, since for them G always corresponds to Δι
of the soft chromatic scale. When the melody reverts from the soft chromatic
modal genre to a mode that can acceptably be accommodated by regular
accidentals, the appropriate Byzantine music symbol 
is used.
_______________________
[*]
Strictly speaking, it is incorrect to refer to the eight divisions of
the Byzantine oktoechos as "scales." While some of their musical
gestures are reminiscent of those in modern Western scales, the Eastern
melodies, like their counterparts in the old Latin musical repertories,
behave in ways entirely alien to contemporary scale-based tunes.
In order to differentiate between the two, chants are said to belong
to one of the eight "modes." (vid. Harvard Dictionary of Music,
Revised Edition, Cambridge, Massachusetts,
1970, pp. 753-4.)
For a simplified explanation of the Byzantine musical system, see: http://www.newbyz.org/namethattone.pdf
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