October and November 2020

 

The Church of Hagia Sophia

Professor Hector Williams, UBC
Monday October 26, 2020 @ 19:30 PDT 

The church of Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom) was the greatest church of the Byzantine world.  Built by the emperor Justinian between AD 532-537 it served for nearly a thousand years as the centre for Orthodox worship in Constantinople.  After the Ottoman capture of the city in May of 1453 Mehmet II made it the most important mosque in the city and so it remained until it officially opened as a museum in 1935. Its design influenced great Ottoman mosques like the Selemaniye and the "Blue Mosque". The talk will present the history, architecture and mosaic decoration of one the greatest religious buildings in the world and talk about its possible future after its conversion back into a mosque by the Erdogan government this summer.  The speaker first visited the church in 1969 and has been there at least eight times

How Ancient Greek Music Won Hearts and Minds

Professor Michael Griffin, UBC with

Theodore Koumartzis, Luthieros, Thessaloniki

Monday November 30, 2020 at @ 19:30 PST

This unique meeting of Pharos will explore the work of the Koumartzis family, based near Thessaloniki, to reconstruct the Ancient Greek lyre and kithara. We’ll listen together to living examples of classical Greek music, ranging from the Epitaph of Seikilos—arguably the oldest surviving written music in the world—to improvisational reconstructions on the Greek modes; and we’ll have time to experiment with a replica lyre. The talk will include an interview with Theodore Koumartzis, luthier and musician, and a discussion by Michael Griffin of the implications of music in the philosophy of Plato and Pythagoras—particularly the power of music to cultivate our hearts and minds.

You can preview video examples of Luthieros’ musical instruments in action:

• “Journey”, Aphrodite Patoulidou and Theodore Koumartzis: https://youtu.be/vpv2Va_6zTc
•  ύμνος στη μούσα Καλλιόπη και τον Απόλλωνα, Thanasis Kleopas: https://youtu.be/Y8Hpyov3Tt8 

This lecture will be streamed live on Zoom: Non-Pharos members may register to receive the link by sending an email to:  PharosVancouver@gmail.com

A link to a video recording for later viewing will be circulated following the lecture. 

Next Pharos Lecture: Monday January 25, 2021 @ 19:30 PST

Speaker TBA

These lectures will be free online zoom presentations. To subscribe, sent an email to PharosVancouver@gmail.com