The splendor of Byzantine sacred art, preserved in ancient churches in both Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire, and the Cappadocia region of Turkey, is the subject of “Vaults of Heaven: Visions of Byzantium,” an exhibition of photographs on view at the Fairfield University Art Museum through September 16, 2016. For exhibition opening hours, concert details, and other information visit the museum’s website (fairfield.edu/museum).
In collaboration with the Axion Estin Foundation, the museum presents “Voices of Byzantium,” a concert of Byzantine sacred music. During the concert, images from the exhibition will be projected behind an ensemble of chanters who will perform an exquisite selection of response repertory linked to the saints and themes captured in these monumental works by acclaimed Turkish photographer Ahmet Ertug. Renowned chanters Eleftherios Eleftheriadis and Giorgos Theodoridis will serve as soloists.
Since 2006, the Axion Estin Foundation, based in New Rochelle, New York, has helped to bring the musical heritage of Byzantium to a diverse public. No medium catches the audience up in the spirit of Byzantium more directly than does music, which literally restores a voice from the past. Through their conferences and sponsored lectures, Axion Estin continues to present the best and most recent scholarship on Byzantine music as well as world-class performances informed by this research. (www.axionestin.org)