Fecioară Curată ('Agni Parthene' in Romanian)
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Grupul BYZANTION chant 'Fecioara Curata' (Agni Parthene).
I have often enjoyed listening to Agni Parthene by Saint Nektarios on Mothering Sunday, and in the past I have posted this Romanian Orthodox version.
The melody has an unusual history in that it came to birth after the composer heard the tune Greensleeves being sung to the text "What Child Is This?". The text Αγνή Παρθένε was written by Saint Nektarios of Aegina in the 19th century and remains a favourite among Eastern Orthodox Christians.
In recent years Αγνή Παρθένε has found a wider audience through the recordings and performances of the Serbian Orthodox cantor called Divna who sings it in Greek:
This piece is para-liturgical but I think quite a few Eastern Orthodox Christians think of it as liturgical as it is employed at times as a closing hymn after a liturgy.
