MUSIC MINISTRY

Chrysanthy Therianos is currently the Choir Director and Jr. Choir Director for the Denver Greek Orthodox Assumption Cathedral, positions she has held for almost 15 years. As a nationally recognized musician, Chrysanthy has performed many roles in furthering music in our church; she has led numerous workshops on Byzantine Chant and Youth Participation in our services, judged children’s choir competitions, and has been the Youth Music Director for the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Denver for over ten years. She is also composing her first Choral Divine Liturgy.Chrysanthy earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music Education at St. Olaf College in Minnesota, singing and touring the United States with the premier St. Olaf Choir. She has taught music in New York, Oklahoma and Colorado and studied classical piano under Concert pianist Rodney Mobley. As well, she has studied Byzantine Chant at the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Germany (2001 – 2005), in Aachen, Germany, under Stellios Kanonis, a model Greek chanter who recorded with and was a part of Lycourgos Angelopoulos’ choir in Greece. Chrysanthy continues to study voice under New York Metropolitan Opera Tenor, Matthew Plenk, while also studying Byzantine music with Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Denver Protopsaltis, Michael Stefanoudakis (assistant Byzantine teacher for Fotios Ketsetzis at Holy Cross Seminary.) As a founding member of Eikona, Chrysanthy has performed throughout America and Canada. They have made 11 recordings of Byzantine Chant in English and original compositions resulting in over 60,000 CDs sold. They are currently recording their 12th album and their music is available both on-line and in CD. Chrysanthy Therianos lives in Denver, CO with her husband, Col. Michael Therianos (Ret), and three of their four children (Alexios, Seraphim, and Anastasia). Their daughter, Katerina, is married to Patrick Lynch and resides in Pasadena, CA.

Katerina is the assistant director of the choir.

James N. Maniatis, DDS, has directed the Choir in Denver for over forty years. “Dr. Jim” is a practicing dentist in his native city of Denver. He has also conducted choirs at his Loyola University alma mater, Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Chicago, and St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church in Denver. He has been the guest conductor at past musical conferences of the Denver and Chicago Choir Federations. In 1984, His Eminence, Archbishop Iakovos named Dr. Jim an Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. In 1999, His Eminence, Metropolitan Isaiah presented him with the Athenagoras Medal for his years of service to the Metropolis of Denver. Dr. Jim received the Archbishop Iakovos Distinguished Service Award in 2005, the first to be presented in the country by the National Forum of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians. And, just last year, he received the National Ministry of Music Award from the National Religious Music Alliance. Dr. Maniatis’ wife, Connie, is the Cathedral organist and has been at her husband’s side during the entire tenure of his ministry. They are the proud parents of three daughters and have twelve grandchildren.

The late George T. Demos, MD, was a retired Otolaryngologist-Head and Neck Surgeon in Denver. He studied music composition and choral conducting at the University of Denver and studied Greek Orthodox choral music with Frank Desby, Tikey Zes and Theodore Bogdanos. He was the Assistant Director of Music at the Assumption Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Denver until his passing and had also directed Greek Orthodox choirs in Atlanta, San Antonio and Spokane. He was a past President and Editor/Publisher of the Denver Choir Federation. He edited and published the “Byzantine Liturgy: Hymnology and Order,” by Dr. Theodore Bogdanos. He was the second National Chairman of the National Forum of Greek Orthodox Musicians and directed the Endowment for the Chrysanthos Chair of Byzantine and Church Choral Music at the Holy Cross Seminary. Dr. Demos was honored with the presentation of the St. John of Damascus Award and the St. Romanos Medallion. He had been honored by the Greek Orthodox Church nationally with the presentation of the Archbishop Iakovos 30 Years of Service Award. The Patriarchate of Constantinople honored him with election as Archon of the Knights of St. Andrew.