About Feodor Krestjanin’s creative activity in the 1598—1607 years*

Abstract

We can get an idea of Feodor Krestjanin’s creative activity at the Tsar’s chorus of singing “diaki” (chanters) due to the unique complex of sources. There are surviving records of chants and their fragments, made by one of those chanters. The Anonymous Diak’s records were often accompanied by extensive remarks that relate to 1598—1607 years, covering the last decade of the great master’s life. Their study in the context of old Russian manuscript tradition of chanting helps to reveal the essence of Feodor Krestjanin’s creative solutions while composing his own works, lets show his techniques used in training the singing diaki, makes it possible to recreate a kind of chronicle of his professional activity in the specified period