Solon Hadjisolomos
Solon J. Hadjisolomos (born 8 October 1938) is a Cypriot musicologist. Hadjisolomos was born in Empa, Paphos, Cyprus. He studied Theology and Greek literature at the University of Athens. He also studied Byzantine Music at Athens Conservatoire and at the Greek National Conservatoire, as well as Classical Song (Opera-Monody) at the National Conservatoire. As a student in Athens, he worked with the late Spyros D. Peristeris, chief Cantor at Metropolitan Cathedral of Athens, in the Research Center for Greek Folklore of the Academy of Athens, where he specialised in folk music. At the same time, he began  to sing in the choir of the Athens Cathedral and then at the church of St. Stylianos of Gizi, and later in St. Filothei Temple as well as in Taxiarchae church (Panagia Grigorousa), In Cyprus Hadjisolomos was a deputy headteacher of middle schools and taught Greek literature and Greek Orthodox doctrine. He also taught also Byzantine Music in the Cyprus National Conservatoire. He also served as chief cantor in various churches. Now is the chief cantor in the Holy Metropolis of Paphos. He is also a Professor of Byzantine Music and Musicology in the Cyprus Greek College of Music. In  1971 Hadjisolomos founded the Pancyprian Union of Church Singers, and since then he has been the President and Director of its Byzantine Choir, with multiple events and concerts, both in Cyprus (music halls, theatres, radio, television etc.), and abroad (England, France, Syria, Israel, United States, Canada, Italy etc.). On a scholarship by Archbishop Makarios, he studied at the University of Copenhagen from 1977 to 1982 under the late Jorgen Raasted. In 1985 he received a PhD from the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, and his doctorate was confirmed by the Department of Music Studies of the National University of Athens. For  several years he served as President of the National Cyprus Music Committee of UNESCO and in 1990 he addressed the General Assembly of the International Committee in Paris. He is a board member of the Center for Scientific Studies of Kykkos Monastery. A special dedication and reference is made on the publication "21st Century, Cyprus, Volume E", issued by The Foundation Of Ecumenical Hellenism (pages 442-445) www.gnl.gr