Metropolitan Andrei Şaguna on the Practice and Tradition of Music of Byzantine Origin in the Romanian Orthodox Church of Transylvania

The metropolitan Andrei Şaguna (1869-1873) was the head of the Orthodox Church of Transylvania at a time when the latter had to face various problems of church administration.

His efforts were directed at the preservation and continuation of psaltic chanting of Byzantine origin as a basic part of the tradition of the Orthodox Church in all of the three Romanian principalities, Moldavia, Wallachia, and Transylvania.

He gathered around him all those who were familiar with the Byzantine chants in the area, and religious education made considerable progress due tohim as he placed the learning of church singing among the top subjects in schools. His idea was that "science and arts ensure a people's strength and future", while the church can bring together arts, science and culture and polarize the best efforts of the whole nation thereby facilitating its advancement.

Constantin Catrina