A Byzantine Christmas

Celebrate the holiday season with the Boston-based vocal ensemble Psaltikon at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Centerville, on Friday, December 16 at 7 pm.

The event will feature carols, chants, and readings from modern Greek authors, including Photios Kontoglou and Alexandros Papadiamantis.

Tickets for Friday’s concert, which are $25 per person and $15 for children 12 and under, can be purchased in advance by calling St. George at 508-775-3045. Depending on availability, a limited number of tickets may be available at the door.

This is St. George’s first-time hosting Psaltikon which was founded in 2010 by Dr. Spyridon Antonopoulos of Boston, a cantor and musicologist who obtained his doctorate from City, University of London. Over the past 12 years, Psaltikon has performed concerts, including “A Byzantine Christmas,” for audiences in concert halls, churches, and universities throughout the Northeast, Pacific Northwest, and Europe.

In 2017, the ensemble completed “A Day of Resurrection,” serving as the first-ever recording of the famed “Paschal Canon,” attributed to St. John of Damascus, in the medieval Byzantine style. The word “psaltikon” refers to the medieval chant book for soloists which contained the most virtuosic chants from the now-extinct Asmatic Rite of Constantinople.