The Axion Estin Foundation (AEF)

Mostly Orthros Festival, December 8, 2012

The 2012 Mostly Orthros Festival consists of a conference during the day (9 am - 4 pm) and a concert in the evening (7:30-9 pm). The international conference will take place at the James Chapel of the Union Theological Seminary, 3041 Broadway at 121st Street, New York, New York, 10027. It will include a keynote address entitled "The All-Night Vigil at the Tomb of Jesus in Early Christian Jerusalem, and its Musical Legacy East and West" by Dr. Peter Jeffery, Michael P. Grace II Professor of Medieval Studies at the University of Notre Dame, and Scheide Professor of Music History Emeritus at Princeton University. Additional presentations will be delivered by distinguished scholars Dr. Susan Boynton, Columbia University; Dr. Alexander Lingas, City University London; Dr. Achilleas Chaldaeakes, Music Department of Athens University, Greece; Dr. Grammenos Karanos, Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology; Dr. Mehmet Ali Sanlikol, Brown University & Emerson College. Doctoral candidates presenting recent findings from their doctoral dissertation research include Alan Gampel, Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, New York University; Spyridon Antonopoulos, City University London; Jamie Greenberg Reuland, Department of Music, Princeton University; Adrian Sarbu, Iasi, Romania.

Conference registration fee: $25 in advance / $50 at the door. Payments accepted by check only. Payable to Axion Estin Foundation. Postmark by December 3, 2012, to receive reduced rate ($25). Mail to Axion Estin Foundation, 10 Mill Road, New Rochelle, NY 10804.

For more information on the conference contact Dr. Angelo Lampousis at (914) 235-6100 or alampousis@gc.cuny.edu.

Click here to review the titles and abstracts of presentations

Saturday, December 8, 2012, Concert at Artswestchester

The concert event will take place at Artswestchester located at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue, White Plains, New York, 10601 (7:30-9 pm). The concert will explore the cultural differences between Byzantine Music and Ottoman/Turkish Music and it will be complemented by a pre-concert lecture by Dr. Mehmet Ali Sanl?kol. The first part of the music program will feature Byzantine Chant compositions interpreted by Eleftherios Eleftheriadis, instructor of Byzantine Music at the William Spyropoulos School of Flushing, New York, and Protopsaltes (head chanter) of Saint Nicholas Shrine Church of Flushing, New York. The second part of the music program will feature a performance of Ottoman and Turkish Music by Dr. Sanl?kol of the Dünya ensemble. Admission: $20 at the door / $15 in advance. For more information on the concert contact Dr. Tom van Buren at (914) 428-4220 x 329.

Seminary Receives the "Great Theory of Music" - March 2012

This past Friday at The St. Vladimir's Seminary, Chapel services were sung in traditional Byzantine style, and at a reception following, the foundation presented the seminary with a much-needed contribution to its Byzantine music collection. AEF's mission is to identify opportunities to introduce Byzantine Music content into academic curricula in the United States.

Click Here for More Information

Axion Estin Foundation to Honor St. Vladimir's Seminary

Acknowledging its long-standing interaction with St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, the Axion Estin Foundation, with Chanter Christos Chalkias, will present the seminary with 20 volumes of the "Great Theory of Music" by Chrysanthos of Madytos (1770-1846), during an evening reception Friday, March 23, 2012, on the seminary campus. The presentation will immediately follow the services of Little Compline and the Fourth Stasis of the Salutations of the Theotokos, served according to Byzantine liturgical tradition and including renowned chanter Christos Chalkias of Thessalonica, Greece. Services will be held in Three Hierarchs Chapel, with a reception and presentation following in the John G. Rangos Family Building.

Click Here for More Information
Read the Orthodox Christian Laity Article

Two Cultural Events - March 2012

The Axion Estin Foundation Board of Directors cordially invites you to two Cultural Events on the same day Saturday, March 24, 2012. Our Annual Supporters Reception at the Liederkranz Club, featuring a lecture by Fr. Dr. Stefanos Alexopoulos of the Yale Institute of Sacred Music on the topic Tracing the Origins and Evolution of Lenten Liturgical Practices. Also The Byzantine Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts chant performance by Christos Chalkias . Hors d'oeuvres Reception to follow the lecture. Suggested Minimum Donation $125.00 Doors Open 3:00 pm - Lecture 3:30 pm R.S.V.P. Required by March 16th, 2012

Click Here for More Information

CONTRIBUTIONS:

We call on the Friends of the Axion Estin Foundation (AEF) as well as on those who appreciate Byzantine Music to support the AEF's initiatives by making a tax-deductible contribution through our secure website.

Click Here to Make a Contribution!

Cloisters Museum - September 2011

We invite you to join the Axion Estin Foundation at a guided tour of the Cloisters Museum and Gardens, the branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art devoted to the art and architecture of medieval Europe. The museum tour will begin at 10:30 am. It will be followed by a catered Picnic at 12 pm at the "Cloisters Lawn", inside Fort Tryon Park. The suggested donation for this event is $75 per person. Please reserve your place by phone (914) 235-6100 or via email at rsvp@axionestin.org
Click Here to View the Invitation

Mostly Orthros Festival II - December 2010

The Axion Estin Foundation successfully completed the Mostly Orthros Byzantine Chant & Folk Music Festival (December 3-7, 2010) in collaboration with CUNY-Graduate Center's PhD Programs in Music and the Center for Byzantine & Modern Greek Studies at Queens College, CUNY. Other significant collaborators in this festival were the Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation (USA) by supporting Dr. Peter Jeffery (click here to view lecture schedule) as Senior Visiting Scholar, the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), by supporting the Greek folk music presentation, and The Rev. Peter N. Kyriakos Endowment Fund by underwriting the expenses of the second (electronic) edition of the "Great Theory of Music."

Click Here for Calendar of Events
Click Here for Photos of the Events

Mostly Orthros Festival I - January 2010

Post Event Press Release

The Mostly Orthros 2010 Byzantine Chant & Folk Music Festival was organized by the Axion Estin Foundation in collaboration with CUNY-Graduate Center's PhD Program in Ethnomusicology. Other significant collaborators in this year's festival were the Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation (USA) by supporting Dr. Katy Romanou as Senior Visiting Scholar, The Rev. Peter N. Kyriakos Endowment Fund by underwriting the expenses of the "Great Theory of Music" publication, the National Forum of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians by partially supporting the same publication, and the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), by supporting the Greek folk music presentation.

Click Here for More

Music Review by Stanley Takis - July 2009

"...The new recording, Sacred Music of Byzantium, produced by the Axion Estin Foundation, offers a nearly perfect glimpse into a vast and ancient vocal art. The Greek Byzantine Choir under the direction of Lycourgos Angelopoulos displays a technical proficiency and precision that reflects their long years of dedication to the performance of this music..."

Click here to read more.

New Podcast "The Chanter's Stand: Byzantine Music Today"

This podcast, produced by the Orthodox Christian Network (OCN) in cooperation with the Axion Estin Foundation and Hellenic Public Radio COSMOS FM 91.5 FM in New York, will feature interviews with specialists and experts in the field of Byzantine Chant. OCN Executive Director Fr. Christopher Metropulos shares: “OCN is proud to announce a new Podcast Channel with the Axion Estin Foundation, a well-known and highly-respected group of chanters and scholars who share the ancient historical music of Orthodoxy with the world.”

Click here to access this new podcast.

Click here to read more.

New 2009 Axion Estin Foundation Board of Trustees

The 2009 elections to the Axion Estin Foundation Board of Trustees were held on April 13, 2009, in New Rochelle. The Board of Trustees is the ultimate governing authority of the Axion Estin Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization registered in the state of New York of the United States. Click here for more information.

Educational Video-Podcasts:

Axion Estin Launches Educational Video-Podcasts

Thanks to a generous contribution by Axion Estin long-time supporters Mr. & Mrs Dimitrios C. Vissas the Axion Estin Foundation makes publicly available in video podcast form excerpts from the 2008 Axion Estin Symposium on Byzantine Music Education.
>>Click here to view!

GREEK BYZANTINE CHOIR PRESENTATION:

Axion Estin Foundation (AEF) joined forces with the Boston Early Music Festival (click here to visit the site) and the Metropolitan Museum of Art (click here to visit the site) in order to bring The Greek Byzantine Choir directed by Lycourgos Angelopoulos to the United States.