Announcement: Multimodal School of Byzantine Music, Theory and Practice in the USA

[Nikolaos Giannoukakis]

FROM THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF BYZANTINE MUSIC AND HYMNOLOGY
www.asbmh.pitt.edu

Re: Official Announcement on the opening of an Internet-based, live broadcast with archived material School of Byzantine Chant

It is with great pleasure for the Society to announce the functionality of an Internet-based School of Byzantine Chant. The project is supported by a number of generous individuals and foundations in Greece, Russia, Canada and the USA who asked to remain anonymous.

Given the paucity of individuals in North America with the in-depth knowledge, experience, credibility and formation in all aspects of Byzantine Music (theory and practice in line with the methods and traditions accepted by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople) to teach those willing to learn and to serve as the future generation of chanters mainly in North America, the Society arranged the creation of a multimodal School of Byzantine Music, Practice and Theory.

1) The School will carry live broadcasts of systematic lessons on all aspects of Byzantine Music and will archive the broadcasts for future consultation, or perusal where live connection is not possible given the multiple time zones

2) The School will offer a month long intensive summer session on practical and theoretical aspects of Byzantine Music in Pittsburgh annually

3) The School will partner with established credible institutions in Greece for those wishing to further their knowledge to a professional status. It has already established a means for advanced individuals to be tested and to acquire certificates and diplomas in Byzantine Music in Greece.

Thus far, the following modules are already functioning or in the process of being finalised:

a) Live Internet video broadcast (with the possibility of real time question/answer) of lessons from the ANASTASIMATARION (in its entirety) by Dr. Nick Giannoukakis every Tuesday at about 6:30 PM EDT (EST). Although the language of the hymns is in the original Greek, the explanations and the commentary is in English.

b) Archived video lessons of the Anastasimatarion (as in [a] above) accessible over the Internet.

c) Archived video lessons of the Anastasimatarion by the Archon Hymnodist of the Great Church of Christ, George Hatzichronoglou. Commentary and theoretical considerations in Greek.

d) On March 6th, 2010, Mr Paul Combitsis will begin live Internet video broadcast of the music of Holy Week. The broadcasts will be archived for further consultation. The language of the music will be in the original Greek, but the commentary and theoretical considerations will be in English.

e) Beginning in the summer 2010, Byzantine Music lessons in the English language (i.e. English translations metered on the original Greek hymns) will be broadcast live in video and archived.

All live broadcasts feature music performed in "solfege" (parallagi) and syllable-melody in line with traditional learning norms.

f) At this time, the School envisages an intensive month-long summer session in Pittsburgh for those willing to further their knowledge in all aspects of Byzantine Music, theory and practice. Further information will be forthcoming as the details are worked out in the next 2-3 months.

This is a ground-breaking project and a first for North America which brings together credible, well-trained and deeply-knowledgeable chantors from Canada, the USA and Greece to further the teaching of Byzantine music in the most traditional and ecclesiastically-acceptable form according to the acceptable norms of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

There is no cost for joining and participating in the School or accessing the archived videos. Furthermore, we do not anticipate registration charges for the foreseen summer sessions in Pittsburgh.

For further information: http://www.asbmh.pitt.edu/page21/page21.html

 

[greek487]

Mr. Giannoukakis,

Your project seems exciting and ambitious. I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors.

ONLY the following statements concern me......

(theory and practice in line with the methods and traditions accepted by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople)

to further the teaching of Byzantine music in the most traditional and ecclesiastically-acceptable form according to the acceptable norms of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

From your posts elsewhere you vehemently oppose and dismiss what you call the "Karas Method". Are you are implying that the Ecumenical Patriarchate disapproves of those teaching and practicing from a Karas framework? You may personally disagree with Karas, but you cannot say that his approach is condemned by the Ecumenical Patriarchate. It's simply inaccurate.

As you must know, the Patriarch made Lycourgos Angelopoulos, director of the Greek Byzantine Choir and most famous student of Simon Karas, the Archon Protopsaltis of the Holy Archdiocese of Constantinople. His All Holiness invites Archon Angelopoulos and his choir to numerous worships services, including Italy and the Ukraine. In addition, His All Holiness has praised the work of Georgios Konstandinou, a musicologist highly influenced by Simon Karas' musical insights.

It's factually wrong to suggest otherwise. Please clarify this immediately. Your worthwhile project deserves success, and those influenced by Karas pose no threat to it. In fact, they have already been laboring very much in the same spirit and purpose.

Thank you,
Tasos

 

[Nikolaos Giannoukakis]

Mr. Nassis,

You are apparently having problems understanding the English language.

Read the announcement again:

http://www.psaltologion.com/showthread.php?t=11749

Where does it say anything about Karas, the Karas method or anything related to Karas? Your conjecturing is very strange.

What I teach Mr. Nassis, I learned from very respected Protopsaltai of old time. Nothing more and nothing less.

Whoever is interested in attending our program will learn what has been taught by Constantinopolitan psaltai and 60 years of Byzantine Chant in Greece. The material derives from classic texts and adapted in the English language and used under permission. Nothing more and nothing less.

How you conjecture Karas from our announcement is beyond me.......

NG.

 

[Dimitri]

[Moderator note] Dear Taso, going from thread to thread making off-topic comments and sparking flame wars and personal attacks is something that we have warned against many times in the past in this forum. Please do not continue that. If you have something musical to offer that has not been heard please offer it in the appropriate place. The rest does not benefit anybody. Rather the opposite. Thank you.

 

[greek487]

Dimitri and Mr. Giannoukakis,

My post was a question of clarification from the text within the announcement. I asked. . .

Are you are implying that the Ecumenical Patriarchate disapproves of those teaching and practicing from a Karas framework?

And Mr. Giannoukakis responded with. . .

Where does it say anything about Karas, the Karas method or anything related to Karas?

That's it. Sweet and simple.



It's just when I see Mr. Giannoukakis adamantly discussing Karas and his students as "outliers" and "heretics", and making statements such as . . .

Fourth, we do not recommend any personal teacher other than those who are faithful to the Chrysanthine system as approved by the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

. . . the message seems clear.


So, again, is the implication that the Ecumenical Patriarchate disapproves of teaching and practicing Byzantine music from a Karas framework?

If not, then please make sure you don't make it seem so.

Thank you

 

[Nikolaos Giannoukakis]

Mr. Nassis,

Please secure an official position statement by the Ecumenical Patriarch that SPECIFICALLY SANCTIONS AND APPROVES THE KARAS METHOD as a didactic method, as a chant method that represents the view of the Patriarchate and that directs its use.

Nothing more and nothing less.

The Church of Greece and Metropolitan Nicodemus of Patras (+) are already clear on the matter (two encyclicals by the CofG and one by Nicodemus).

The Karas followers are in violation of the Church of Greece's position.

The matter is not only musicological. It is also one of RESPECT AND OBEDIENCE to the church in general.

NG