CONFERENCES HISTORY

It is a pleasure to announce the Fourth International Conference "Byzantine Musical Culture", a series which began in 2007 and takes place every two years. The Conferences focus on all scholarly musical, musicological, artistic, poetic and literary aspects relevant to the global theme of Byzantine Musical Culture and are open to academic scholars as well as practicing musicians and independent scholars. The Conferences also includes musical soirees, cultural events and visits to theme-related sites of interest.

The First International Conference in 2007 was dedicated in memoriam to the 1600 years since the passing of St-John Chrysostom, Church Father and Hymnographer.

The Second International Conference in 2009 was dedicated in memoriam to the 80 years since the passing of the author, hymnographer and member of the Academy of Athens Alexander Moraitidis (Monk Andronikos). At this Conference, Emmanuel Hatzimarkos, internationally-renowned Protopsaltis, Choir Director, Composer and Professor of Byzantine Music, was celebrated and acclaimed as honorary Chairman.

The Third International Conference in 2011 was dedicated to Ilias Tantalides, a Greek poet, philologue and renowned Professor of Hellenic Letters at the Theological Seminary of Halki. Additionally, the Conference was also dedicated to Patriarch Joseph the 1st of Constantinople and to the artist/painter Ioannes Skarlatos.

Past Conferences have been held under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece, the Ministry of Education of Greece and the Municipality of Paeanea, Attica, Greece as well as under the Aegis of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

The Conferences are traditionally held in
Paeanea, a suburb of Attica about 17 kilometers from the center of Athens a region that merges the calm physical beauty of Attica with her rich archaic, Byzantine and post-Byzantine history and ecclesiastic traditions, shrines and sites.

The Conferences have been blessed by the greetings of:

His All-Holiness, the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I,
His Beatitude the Patriarch of Alexandria Theodoros,
His Holiness the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kyrill,
The late blessed Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexei,
His Beatitude the Archbishop of Cyprus Chrysostom,
His Beatitude the Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Ieronymos,
The late blessed Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Christodoulos,
His Eminence the Metropolitan of Warsaw and All Poland Savvas,
His Eminence the Archbishop of America Demetrios,
His Eminence the Archbishop of Crete Eirinaios,
His Eminence the Metropolitan of Toronto (Canada) Sotirios,
His Eminence the Metropolitan of Pittsburgh Maximos, and
His Eminence the Metropolitan of Proikonissos Joseph.

Key collaborators of the Conferences have included:

The Municipality of Skiathos
The Institute of Byzantine Musicology of the Church of Greece
The International Foundation Johannes Koutsoheras
The United Authors' Movement
The Council of Hellenes Abroad
The Vorre Museum
The Historic-Ecclesiastic Museum "The Nativity of Christ" of the Metropolis of Mesogaias and Lavreotiki
The Ecclesiastic Council of the Church of the Life-Giving Font of Peania (a living shrine of the hagiographic works of Photios Kontoglou)
The "Synidioktissia" Cooperative of Peania
The Choir of Greek Traditional Music of the Municipality of Peania
The Ergastiri Psaltikis
The Byzantine Choir of Athens
The Choral Ensemble "Panarmonion"
"Filippos Nakas" Music House






Ελληνικά/Greek