ARCHON

Published by the National Forum of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians, September 28, 2004

GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH MUSICIAN AND ARCHON RECEIVES NATIONAL MINISTRY OF MUSIC AWARD

George S. Raptis, longtime choir director, composer, and church music clinician in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, is one of 20 church musicians from many religious jurisdictions being recognized by the National Religious Music Week Alliance for developing outstanding religious music programs for their churches. The Alliance is a multi-denominational organization whose purpose it is to encourage all places of worship to celebrate and honor the ministry of music.

"Our aim is to recognize men and women for exceptional performance in the ministry of music," said Kevin Samblanet, Chair of the Alliance’s Awards Committee. "By focusing on the accomplishments of these leaders, we encourage and support the work of all ministers of music."

Mr. Raptis’s nomination, submitted by the National Forum of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians, was judged by a national panel of adjudicators in this, the fourth year of the program. Dr. Vicki Pappas, National Chairman of the National Forum stated, “It is a great honor for our Orthodox Church's musicians to be so highly placed among musicians from so many other non-Orthodox jurisdictions, and to be recognized nationally outside of our own Church. The awards are especially timely as our Archdiocese celebrates National Church Music Sunday on October 3, 2004, the day we set aside to recognize the contributions of our church musicians.”

Mr. Raptis has been a long-time choir director of several Greek Orthodox churches in the Detroit area for more than 60 years – most notably, Sts. Constantine and Helen in Westland for fifty years (1944-1994) and St. John in Sterling Heights. He currently is the Associate Director of the St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church in Troy, and also serves as Director of Music for the Metropolis of Detroit.

Mr. Raptis has also distinguished himself as a guest director for choirs across the United States, as a clinician for various church music workshops, as a producer of liturgical resources, and as a composer of Greek Orthodox liturgical music.

He has been invited as guest conductor and workshop clinician throughout the nine metropolises of the Archdiocese of America. He has conducted workshops in choral conducting, vocal techniques, and church music repertoire at Annual Conferences of Church Music Federations and/or at their Church Music Institutes.

Specifically for the Metropolis of Detroit, Mr. Raptis has been called upon to develop and conduct many programs, including annual Nativity concerts; services for two of the US visits of Bartholomew, the Ecumenical Patriarch of the Greek Orthodox Church in Detroit and Pittsburgh; a Vesper Service to commemorate the Catholic Cardinal of Detroit’s presentation of the relics of St. Nicholas to the Greek Orthodox Metropolitan of Detroit; among other programs. Similarly, he was selected to be guest director of the national choir which sang the Divine Liturgy for the 1978 and 2002 Biennial Clergy-Laity Congresses of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, which were held in Detroit and Philadelphia, respectively.

Mr. Raptis has also been an indefatigable teacher and mentor to many choir directors, organists, singers, and other composers. He travels often to various parishes to work with new directors and support church musicians. He has championed the musical works of composers both experienced and new. If he is unable to travel, he is in constant contact with church musicians over the phone.

In addition to his choral conducting work, Mr. Raptis has composed and arranged extensively for the services of the Greek Orthodox Church in America. His works include a recently-published original setting for the complete Divine Liturgy (2003), a myriad of hymns for the various feast days and holy seasons of the Greek Orthodox Church, and arrangements of Greek folk songs. To this day, he continues to be a prolific composer and arranger.

His new liturgical setting was selected by the Metropolises of Detroit and Pittsburgh as the music to be performed by the massed choirs during the Divine Liturgy of their 2003 and 2004 Annual Choir Conferences. His setting has recently been selected by the Metropolises of Boston, New Jersey, and Atlanta for performance at their Annual Conventions during this up coming year. He was invited to guest conduct his work for the latter two.

Administratively, Mr. Raptis has carried out many other distinguished projects related to church music. He was editor of the 50^th Anniversary Album of the Mid-Eastern Federation of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians as well as the 25^th Anniversary Album of the National Forum of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians. Nationally, he serves as editor of MUSICA, the official periodical of the National Forum and serves as an advisor to the National Chairman regarding publications and other activities.

Mr. Raptis has also been responsible for the production of many fine recordings of Greek Orthodox church music; namely: the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom (a 2-CD album of the premier of the Raptis liturgical setting); the Patriarchal Vespers and Divine Liturgy (a 2-CD album of the music sung for Patriarch Bartholomew’s visitation to Detroit); Christos Anesti: Hymns of Orthodox Holy Week and Easter; The Nativity: An Advent Choral Pageant; and a recording of the 1978 Clergy-Laity Congress held in Detroit, which commemorated the works of the Church’s four major contemporary composers. Mr. Raptis has also produced audiotapes and CD recordings of music sung for the Divine Liturgy of many other annual conventions and special programs.

In 1976, for his distinguished work in church music, Mr. Raptis was invested as an Archon of the Order of St. Andrew, and received the Patriarchal Title of “Lambadarios” from His All Holiness, Ecumenical Patriarch Demetrios. This was the first time church musicians had been honored with this international award. He was also honored in 1988 as the recipient of the St. Romanos the Melodist Medallion for distinguished national service in church music.

While Mr. Raptis is not currently holding a full-time position of choir director, his semi-retirement has in no way reduced the tremendous contributions he continues to make to the music ministry of the Greek Orthodox Church. He is still assisting choirs as a substitute director and directs special services for local parishes as well as for his Metropolis of Detroit. He continues to compose and arrange music for the Church, and he is also in demand across the country as a guest clinician and conductor.

George S. Raptis has given of his musical talents to the Greek Orthodox Church for nearly two-thirds of a century and we pray that God will bless him with many more years of service to the music ministry of the Archdiocese of America.



Volume 6 Number 40 - Tuesday, October 4th, 2004	A Publication of the ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN LAITY