Home - Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church

     The Annunciation Church Choir is a volunteer group of parishioners who have been singing during the weekly Divine Liturgy, Holy Week, and on special Feast Days since 1931. Currently with over fifteen members, the choir sings beautiful English and Greek Byzantine hymns, by composers such as Dr. Frank Desby, Nicholas Roubanis, Christos Vrionides, and Anna Gallos that enhance the spiritual experience of the Annunciation Church. We invite you to sing with us at the Divine Liturgy every Sunday morning, beginning with the Great Doxology at 9:50 AM.
          New members are always welcome to the choir! Knowledge of the Greek language is not required, as English phonetics are written in the music (if the hymn is not already sung in English), and there is not an age restriction to become a member. Contact Director Mary Ellen Zeleniuch for more information about becoming a member.
          Rehearsals are held on a regular basis on certain Sundays following the Divine Liturgy. Please refer to the Church Calendar for the schedule of rehearsals, as well as any other choir events.

A History of the Choir
     In 1931, Athanasios Regas organized a group of young men and women to start a choir for the Annunciation Church. Unfortunately, he was not very successful in getting a large group together. But, in 1935, the first formal Annunciation Choir appeared, under the direction of James Aliferis, a professional musician and accomplished cellist. During his tenure, he wrote some musical pieces, such as the Cherubic Hymn, that can still be heard in some churches today. Around 1940, James Aliferis left to take a position with the New York Philharmonic, a symphony orchestra. Anthony Sofos succeeded him as choir director. It was during Sofos' tenure that the organ appeared, and Angelo Damalas became the choir's first organist. Sofos also left to join the New York Philharmonic. In 1944, Miss Denny Emanuel became the next choir director. She struggled when she first became the director, due to the very low number of choir members. "There were Sundays when I was half of a duet!" she said. "I never asked anyone to join the choir; I knew that the only way to enlarge the group was to concentrate on quality so that people would want to be a part of it--and it worked! By the time I married and left for Boston," in 1949, "the choir had grown to fifty--and it was glorious." Denny Emanuel married Ralph Donaldson, a U.S. Government meteorologist, at the Annunciation Church in September of 1949.
     Tom Pallad, an engineering student at Case Institute of Technology, was the next choir director. He played the violin and was also in a Greek band. While Pallad was the director, the choir membership grew to a record-breaking 120 members, which remains to this day the highest number of choir members in the Annunciation's history. During his tenure as choir director, he was elected president of the Tri-State Federation of Greek Orthodox Church Choirs (now Mideastern Federation of Greek Orthodox Church Musicians), which was founded in 1948. In 1953, Tom Pallad resigned and joined the U.S. Navy.
     Dr. Leo Anastos, D.D.S. became the next choir director. From 1938 to 1942, Dr. Anastos served as the choir director at the Annunciation Church in Akron, Ohio. He directed at our church from 1953 to 1955 and returned for one year in 1965. Dr. Anastos is remembered for his rearrangement of the choir's position in the balcony and also for the improvement of the lighting in the balcony. In 1966, Dr. Anastos became the choir director at St. Paul's in North Royalton and directed there until his resignation in 1984.
     Following Dr. Anastos' resignation as Annunciation choir director in 1955, John Tsolainos filled his position. John Tsolainos was the choir director at St. Spyridon Church. When St. Spyridon closed its doors and merged with the Annunciaton Church, Tsolainos began directing the choir at Annunciation. When Sts. Constantine and Helen opened its doors and was looking for a choir director, Tsolainos took the position.
     Nick Svingos then became the choir director in 1957. His wife, Becky (Vasiliki), became the organist. In 1965, Nick Svingos left for one year, during which Dr. Anastos came back to temporarily fill the position. Nick Svingos continued to be the choir director from 1966 until 1975, when Becky Svingos became the director. When she began her tenure as choir director, Mary Ellen (Skordelis) Zeleniuch took over as choir organist. After Becky Svingos' resignation in 1980, Mike Vasilakes volunteered as the next director. Mike Vasilakes also served as the president of the Tri-State Federation of Greek Orthodox Church Choirs prior to Tom Pallad. In 1990, Mike Vasilakes was succeeded by Photia Boukis, who was the choir director until her resignation in 2003. In 2003, the position of the choir director was ultimately not filled, so the organist, Mary Ellen Zeleniuch, assumed both the role of the choir director and the choir organist.