The E-Newsletter of the Mid-Eastern Federation of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians September 2014 Convention Review Issue

The E-Newsletter of the Mid-Eastern Federation of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians September 2014 Convention Review Issue This issue is devoted to this past July s Convention in Columbus, Ohio. Our hosts, the Annunciation Cathedral, presented us with a wonderful four-day weekend, filled with Ohio hospitality, learning-filled workshops, a highly-skilled and dynamic Guest Conductor and Guest Accompanist, fun-filled evenings, a memorable Grand Banquet, plenty of good food, opportunities for fellowship throughout the weekend, and a beautiful Divine Liturgy and Farewell Luncheon on Sunday. Metropolitan Savas was with us for most all of the weekend. For those of you unable to attend, and those who for other reasons were not present, read on to see all that went on! Sunday s Liturgy A Hierarchical Divine Liturgy was celebrated on Sunday with Metropolitan Savas, assisted by four priests: Father Demetrios Gardikas (Annunciation Proistamenos), Father Dean Kokanos (Associate Presbyter), Father John Stavropoulos (Attached Presbyter), and Archdeacon Ryan Gzikowski from the Metropolis. Christina Polizos led the choir in a prayerful rendition of Anna Gallos s second liturgical setting in Greek and English, with Eric Russell, organist at Annunciation Cathedral, served as Guest Organist. MEFGOX chanters Richard Barrett, Jonathan Kenepp, and Samuel Herron joined Vasili Konstantinidis, the Cathedral s head chanter, at the psalterion for Matins and also chanted for some of the Divine Liturgy. The Byzantine Echo September 2014 page 1

A Message from Our Guest Director! Dear Members of the Mid-Eastern Federation, What a blessing to have had the opportunity to conduct the choir for the annual MEFGOX Choir Conference! Thank you to immediate past president, Ted Niforos and the MEFGOX board for placing their trust in me with their invitation to be the guest conductor this year. My heart-felt appreciation goes out to the Columbus Conference Committee led by the three V s, Peter Vatsures, Valerie Baker and Venetia Wurst, who along with the entire Cathedral Choir and community did a beautiful job making everyone feel right at home in their community. A special shout out and extra big thank you to Eric Russell from Columbus, our very talented organist, who did an exceptional job accompanying the choir. He certainly made my job such a pleasure, and I enjoyed working with him so much! And last but certainly not least, a BIG THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart to YOU, the members of the MEFGOX choir. You came prepared, ready to sing, and were such a joy to work with. Christ was truly in our midst throughout the weekend. Your beautiful voices were not only a gift from God, but a gift to God that day, as the wonderful choral sound of our hymns filled the cathedral on Sunday morning. His Eminence Metropolitan Savas of Pittsburgh celebrating the Divine Liturgy together with Father Demetrios Gardikes, Father John Stavropoulos, Father Dean Kokanos, was indeed a very spiritual experience for all of us. I am so happy we were able to be a part of that experience by participating together as the choir that day. Your treasured gift, the beautiful engraved silver clock, sits in a prominent place in our home and serves as a beautiful reminder of the time we shared together. Thank you very much for your thoughtfulness. God bless each and every one of you. With much gratitude and love, Christina Polizos MEFGOX Memorial Scholarships Our MEFGOX Scholarship Trustees, Dan Packis, Irene Georgantas, and Georgia Stathopoulos, awarded seven scholarships this year. Five were awarded from the MEFGOX Memorial Scholarship Fund to: Nicholas Bodle from St. Paul Church in North Royalton; Sophia Lianos from Annunciation Cathedral in Detroit; Socrates Papageorgiou from St. Nicholas Church in Ann Arbor; Otto Wallenmeyer from Holy Trinity in Camp Hill; and Theresa Waseity from Holy Trinity in Canton. Nicholas Papatheodore from St. George in Bloomfield Hills received a scholarship in memory of Mike Hadgis and Mary Amerdes, and Thepina Christulides from Holy Cross in Pittsburgh received another in memory of George Georgantas. Besides participating in their choirs, these young people are active in GOYA and a variety of other school music groups and community service. Congratulations to all our accomplished young church musicians! Scholarships are also available for older churhc musicans to study voice, chant, organ or piano lessons, attend conferences, etc. A Successful Tradition! The Federation continued its new way of raising additional funds for the Federation s Memorial Scholarship Fund. During the Grand Banquet, after announcement of the 2014 scholarship recipients, quite a few Federation members came forward to present donations to the Scholarship Fund in person, some in memory of friends and family, and others to honor significant people in their lives. A wonderful $4000 was raised this way! We hope to continue with this tradition of supporting our Scholarship fund each year! The Byzantine Echo September 2014 page 2

Lots of Great Workshops in Columbus! This year s Church Music Institute, held in conjunction with the Columbus Convention, included 6 different workshops, each packed with tons of information and inspiration! Nicholas Bodle served as CMI accompanist. Singing Better for English Perfect workshop; excellent instructor; very helpful. Now I m aware of vowels and consonants. Pam is a fantastic educator - Wish it was longer. Our featured Guest Instructor was Pam Cramer, choir director and opera singer from Annunciation Cathedral in Houston TX. This was the first of her workshops. She presented a very enlightening workshop on Thursday afternoon about how to articulate so English is clearly understood, else why sing in English? Using the Gallos music, she provided examples for the singers to practice making vowels fall on the downbeat, while making sure consonants were heard at the beginning and end. Vocal Health for Women: Making a Beautiful Sound and Vocal Health for Men: Singing Well at 9:00 in the Morning Entertaining, trouble-shooting. Pam is excellent for women. Loved the teeth for high notes. Great tips! I learned so much. More Richard - good concise and needed techniques. He used time very well. Two concurrent workshops were held on Saturday, one for women and the other for men. The goal of these workshops was to improve the quality of singing helping to reach high notes, good breathing, developing richness and resonance, and elongating the sound. Both Richard and Pam gave singers helpful tips and practice time with the Gallos music. The Second Plagal Mode De-mystified So-o-o very helpful! Actually explained in understandable ways! Loved this info and how it was presented. Richard Barrett, a chanter from Holy Apostles Church in Indianapolis and a professional singer and sometime member of Cappella Romana, presented the second workshop on Thursday, geared towards familiarizing singers with the Second Mode, which was the mode of the Resurrectional Apolitikion for Sunday s Liturgy, Ote Katilthes. He gave a very clear picture of Byzantine chant in general, taught us Ni-Pa- Vou, and then helped us learn examples of hymns in the second mode. Samual Herron asisted in singing some of the examples. The Hymns of Vespers Very interesting. Learned so much. Very enjoyable, informative. I enjoyed hearing Fr. Frank s instruction on praying with our voices. This workshop was the highlight of Thursday evening! Pam joined with Father Frank Milanese, Proistamenos of All Saints Orthodox Church in Weirton WV. Father Frank focused on the theological and ecclesiastical meanings of three of the hymns and prayers of Vespers: Fos Ilaron/O Gladsome Light, Kyrie Ekekrakse/Lord, I Cry Unto Thee, and St. Simeon s prayer. Pam then led the group through a sampling of music for the hymns so that singers could experience and take home with them a variety of types of music, both chant and choral. The Byzantine Echo September 2014 page 3

Church Music in the Digital Age: Thinking Outside the Box Challenges and Opportunities How great to have a Metropolitan who lives in the 21 st Century! It s always so good to hear from our Metropolitans! Metropolitan Savas was chief speaker at Friday s CMI workshop. He noted how technology isn t really new, showing that we have always had some sort of technology; even the early Bibles were technological advances of their day. He discussed how we have so much more information that is easy to access --- music, prayers, instructional materials, all to help us grow in our faith and service. At the end of his talk, he opened the floor to questions and provided an update about retired Metropolitan Maximos. Federation Council Meeting The Federation Council meeting occurred over two days. On Thursday evening, President Ted Niforos presented an overview of the work of the Federation. In his Annual Report, Ted cited productive meetings with our officers, Presidents of other Metropolises, and the National Forum. He urged MEFGOX to continue its youth focus and also to work on recruiting those in the 25-50 age range. Financial reports were presented by Treasurer Peter Vatsures, Scholarship Trustee Dan Packis, and Patrons Chair, Anna Niforos. On Friday morning, fifteen parishes were represented for the decision-making part of the business meeting, and President Ted Niforos again presided. Two major decisions were made: Pamela Cramer was selected as our 2015 Guest Director and officers were elected. Ordinarily, the Council also votes on the next year s Convention site, but this year, no bids were presented thus, the Executive Board was empowered to seek out a site for the 2016 Convention. Election of 2014-15 MEFGOX Officers Elections were held during the Federation Council meeting on Friday morning. Dr. Vicki Pappas was elected as President and Megan Shepherd as Secretary; re-elected were Dan Packis as Vice-President and Peter Vatsures as Treasurer. Later that day, during lunch, State Representatives were selected by their respective parishes. Stepping up to this important role were several newcomers as well as several of our more experienced Reps so that eight of the ten Representative slots were filled! Vicki met with the Reps for an orientation session, stressing that the Federation depended on them carrying out their roles as MEFGOX s direct outreach to member parishes. The newly elected officers recited the Oath of Office at their installation at the end of Sunday s Divine Liturgy. The following are the confirmed State Reps; Vicki is seeking volunteers to appoint for the remaining ones: Northeast Ohio: Nicholas Bodle SE & West Ohio: Valerie Baker Detroit Metro: Elaine Charalambopoulos Outstate Michigan: Anna Kroondyk Indiana/Kentucky: Vicki Pappas New York: Rachel Brashier Tennessee/Arkansas: Samuel Herron Pennsylvania - Central: Kathy Doulgeris Pennsylvania - Western: TBA West Virginia: TBA Convention Facts & Figures There were 77 registrants representing 25 parishes and 7 of our 9 states plus guests from GA, MA, MD, NC, VA, and TX! The Byzantine Echo September 2014 page 4

Columbus-Style Socials! After a full day of workshops, meetings, and rehearsals, Columbus provided Convention participants with fellowship-filled and goodfood-filled social events. On Thursday evening, after the Welcome Dinner and the evening workshops, members were treated to home-made galactoboureko, with plenty of time to meet and greet old friends and new! On Friday evening, the Annunciation s Greek Olympic Club prepared a delicious fish dinner, and then participants were treated to Broadway in Columbus! Columbus s Hellenic Singers sang welcoming numbers and also performed a creative and energetic array of show tunes. Pam Cramer led us through a guessing game of Broadway tunes, there were solo performances by Richard Barrett and Columbus s Julia Michaelides, and Father Demetrios and Father Dean offered hearty parodies of some Beatle s favorites. Columbus added a unique event on Saturday afternoon, providing vouchers for members to explore the stores and restaurants along their Short North boutique area over an extended lunch hour. Throughout the weekend, Diana Synadinos prepared a historical display of choir mementos in the Cathedral Library. She was available to take visitors on a virtual tour of Cathedral Choir and MEFGOX history. May Their Memories Be Eternal A moving part of each Convention is the time we take to honor our departed church musicians and clergy of our two Metropolises. Prayers for more than 300 of blessed memory were offered during the Divine Liturgy. At the conclusion of the Liturgy, Metropolitan Savas and the other clergy chanted a Memorial Service, as we remembered and prayed for the souls of our departed church musicians who loved and served the Church for so many years. The Columbus parish provided a beautiful Koliva for the service. Names of all 300 of the individuals can be found listed in the Convention Album and on the Federation website. In addition, a lovely remembrance was held at the Grand Banquet. Each table lit a candle in the darkened room, and then those assembled sang Meta Ton Aghion in memory of all church music friends who have fallen asleep in the Lord. See You Next Year in! Stay tuned for word of next year s Convention. The officers are meeting on September 20 th to determine the host city and dates for the 2015 Convention, as no bids were presented during the Federation Council meeting at the Convention. We will be singing the Gallos II musical setting for the Divine Liturgy in Greek and English, under the direction of Guest Director Pam Cramer. Stay tuned for more details as the year progresses! The Byzantine Echo September 2014 page 5

Welcome to Newcomers and Visitors! MEFGOX welcomed some new church musicians to our Convention: Samuel Herron a chanter from Chattanooga, TN and Rachel Brashier, a doctoral student at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY. Both of them volunteered to take on leadership roles in Federation governance! Also first-timers from Carmel, IN were choir members Presvytera Emily Bartz and Marty Payne. We were also pleased to have the new National Forum Chairman, Maria Keritsis with us. In addition, visitors were Southeastern Federation President Lucy Papadakos from Charlotte, George Theodossiou from Brockton in the New England Federation - Brocton), Paul Mavromihalis from Bethesda in the Eastern Federation, and Victor Polizos, Christina s husband, from Atlanta. Thanks to the Convention Committee Kudo s to Conference Chairmen Peter Vatsures, Valerie Baker, and Venetia Wurst, along with Fathers Demetrios Gardikes and Dean Kokanos, the Columbus Convention Committee and the entire Annunciation Cathedral community for a job well done! All worked tirelessly for a year to plan and put together their seventh Convention so great! Remembering Columbus 2014 Below and on the next page, you ll see more of what a great time there was in Columbus we learned a lot, sang a lot, met old friends and enjoyed fellowship with new ones, feasted on delicious meals, and then sang with all our hearts on Sunday in praise of Almighty God! More pictures will be posted on our website: www.mefgox.org shortly. CREDITS: Thanks to Venetia Wurst and Victor Polizos for their photographs. Vicki Pappas and Barbara Minton, Co-Editors More Columbus Memories. The Byzantine Echo September 2014 page 6

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