About the School

The School of Byzantine Ecclesiastical Music was founded in 2016 by a team of chanters and teachers, at the pastoral behest of His Eminence Soterios, Archbishop of Canada, of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.  

Mission

Our mission is dedicated to the formation of members of our Local Churches to serve as cantors or chorus members in Orthodox parishes in Montreal. This demands a steadfast, enduring commitment by both students and teachers. On average, a full year of instruction is necessary to impart to students the proficiency to interpret the Byzantine music notation system, known as the “New Method”, or otherwise, the Chrysanthian notation system. However, the comprehensive instruction of theory and a wealthy repertoire of hymns and melodies used in Orthodox Liturgical practice at services and feasts requires an extended span of years.

As members of a Local Church whose See is linked to the first among the “five eyes” of the Church, the First Throne of the Church of Constantinople, the Ecumenical Patriarchate, we take pride in the musical heritage that was imparted throughout the ages. We find inspiration in the latest of great representatives of this sacred liturgical art, the Archon Protopsaltes and Archon Lambadarions of this Great Church of Christ, whose style of interpretation we aspire to emulate and transmit to our students.

In our formative phase, our students were of Greek origin, but by the end of the second year, we quickly realized that we could not be confined to Greek repertoire alone. We were approached by individuals asking for training to interpret hymns in English as well. This call prompted a broadening of our scope, expanding our program to provide teaching of repertoire in the English language thereby welcoming students from other Orthodox Local Churches.

Our abiding hope and aspiration is to extend beyond the preservation of this liturgical heritage and inspire our students to expand and promote Byzantine Ecclesiastical Music to all our Orthodox communities and beyond as the musical expression and legacy of Orthodox Liturgical practice, par excellence.

Delivery Method

Unlike cultural and folkloric arts, Byzantine ecclesiastical music stands out as a vibrant and living tradition upheld by all Eastern Orthodox Churches, including the ancient Patriarchates of Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem. This dynamic tradition is primarily transmitted orally, with students learning through attentive listening and imitation during worship within the Orthodox Church. Our school facilitates both theoretical instruction, whether in a physical classroom or virtual environment, and practical learning by encouraging students to attend Church services where our teachers are actively involved. Recent developments, coupled with a growing interest from students residing beyond the immediate metropolitan area, have prompted our school to embrace unified conference and collaboration technology. This adaptation enables distance learning, granting access to online resources and class recordings.