On Saturday, June 5, 2021, the qualifying exams of the School of Byzantine Music of the Holy Metropolis of Belgium “Saint Hilarious, Bishop of the Picts” took place and was attended by the students of all the branches established in the three countries of the jurisdiction of the Holy Metropolis.
The five-member examination committee consisted of the teachers of the School, while the students showed great interest and enthusiasm, as after a difficult year due to the pandemic, they had the opportunity to communicate live with their teachers and classmates.
At the end of the process, the Director of the School, Deacon Konstantinos Dedes, thanked Metropolitan Athenagoras of Belgium and Exarch of the Netherlands and Luxembourg for his support in the work of the School and conveyed the paternal wishes to the teachers who made valiant efforts to complete the 1st academic year. He then thanked the students who supported this new effort of the Diocese, congratulated them for their scholarly disposition and their performance in Ecclesiastical Music, which, as he stressed, has a moral and spiritual character emanating from the Liturgical Life of our Church and is a great national legacy.
The School of Byzantine Music of the Holy Metropolis of Belgium has been operating since September last year and has 65 students, who attend classes in Greek, Flemish and French. The aim of the School is to introduce the students to the art of Byzantine Music, in order for them to serve in the pulpits of the Diocese and to brighten with their presence and knowledge the Holy Services of the Church.