Annoucing A New International Music Conference to be held, June 2005

WORDS OF WELCOME

The music of the Orthodox Church, in all its diverse cultural manifestations, constitutes one of the riches of the artistic heritage of the world. The constantly increasing popularity and knowledge in the West of the various repertoires which make up this heritage, paralleling the increased exposure of the Orthodox Church outside its traditional territories, have generated a correspondingly greater interest both on part of performers, and of scholars in the fields of musicology and liturgiology.

This upsurge in scholarly activity, compounded by the constantly increasing accessibility of archives, means that there is now a need for an international conference, and after that, for a centre which has as its objective the collation and dissemination of these efforts, in conjunction with the organization of further practical, theoretical and bibliographical projects.

Such an approach will not only contribute to the raising of the profile of Orthodox Church music internationally, but provide a vehicle for deeper and lasting international co-operation in this field, thus avoiding unnecessary duplication of effort.

We believe it important that the conference should provide opportunities for sharing in the understanding of the liturgical music traditions between cantors, scholars and performers in different local Orthodox Churches, cultures, and languages. We invite you to come and live the experience of Orthodox music, on the borders of Lutheran Scandinavia and Orthodox Russia, in Finland.

In June it is warm enough for you to enjoy also the miracle of the nightless nights of the Finnish woods and lakes. Welcome to Joensuu, Finland, in June 2005. The number of places is limited; please apply as soon as possible.

Ivan Moody, Head of Organizing Committee

Petri Piiroinen, Head of Department of Orthodox Theology

JOENSUUN YLIOPISTO

DEPARTMENT OF ORTHODOX THEOLOGY

FACULTY OF THEOLOGY

UNIVERSITY OF JOENSUU

FOUNDATION OF ORTHODOX CULTURE

FINLAND

FIRST INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON