About

Prof. Chris Kyriakakis received his BS degree from the California Institute of Technology, and his MS and PhD degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southern California. His research interests lie at the intersection of acoustics, psychoacoustics, and audio signal processing. His work focuses on acoustical measurement methods of loudspeakers in rooms and device enclosures, and he has developed novel signal processing algorithms for optimizing their performance. Other research topics include multichannel audio acquisition and rendering, virtual microphones and virtual speakers, hybrid headphone-loudspeaker rendering methods, and advanced signal processing techniques for sound quality optimization in small portable devices. His most recent research is in the field of Archaeoacoustics, with a focus on capturing, characterizing, and simulating the acoustics of medieval Byzantine churches, bridging engineering and art history to explore the sounds of antiquity. Prof. Kyriakakis has published nearly 100 technical papers, authored a book titled 'Immersive Audio Signal Processing,' and holds several patents related to acoustic measurement, loudspeaker crossover optimization, and response correction. He received the World Technology Network Award in 2006 for innovations in immersive audio that enable new media and journalism capabilities. His awards also include IEEE Senior Member recognition and the National Academy of Engineering's Frontiers of Engineering. His research aims to advance audio signal processing and acoustical measurement techniques, contributing to both theoretical understanding and practical applications in immersive and spatial audio technologies.

Research topics

• History
• Art
• Visual arts
• Psychology
• Communication
• Literature
• Classics

Selected publications

• Cheroubikon in Acheiropoietos

  2021-01-01

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  In 2014, an international team of scholars measured the acoustical properties of eight churches in Thessaloniki. The recordings are part of an article in Hesperia that examines two of the tested churches, the Acheiropoietos basilica and the cathedral of Hagia Sophia in order to provide objective and phenomenological accounts of how sound — both chanted and spoken — was produced and received. Framing the soundscape of each church through an examination of its original shape, furnishings, decoration, liturgy, music, and acoustics raises new questions about ties between the two buildings and the streets that connected them. This study deepens the understanding of the archaeoacoustics of Thessaloniki’s early churches.

  OA PDFDOI

• Cheroubikon in Hagia Sophia

  2021-01-01

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  In 2014, an international team of scholars measured the acoustical properties of eight churches in Thessaloniki. The recordings are part of an article in Hesperia that examines two of the tested churches, the Acheiropoietos basilica and the cathedral of Hagia Sophia in order to provide objective and phenomenological accounts of how sound — both chanted and spoken — was produced and received. Framing the soundscape of each church through an examination of its original shape, furnishings, decoration, liturgy, music, and acoustics raises new questions about ties between the two buildings and the streets that connected them. This study deepens the understanding of the archaeoacoustics of Thessaloniki’s early churches.

  OA PDFDOI

• Psalm 85 in Hagia Sophia

  2021-01-01

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  In 2014, an international team of scholars measured the acoustical properties of eight churches in Thessaloniki. The recordings are part of an article in Hesperia that examines two of the tested churches, the Acheiropoietos basilica and the cathedral of Hagia Sophia in order to provide objective and phenomenological accounts of how sound — both chanted and spoken — was produced and received. Framing the soundscape of each church through an examination of its original shape, furnishings, decoration, liturgy, music, and acoustics raises new questions about ties between the two buildings and the streets that connected them. This study deepens the understanding of the archaeoacoustics of Thessaloniki’s early churches.

  OA PDFDOI

• Christmas Troparion: Virtual Acheiropoietos

  2021-01-01

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  In 2014, an international team of scholars measured the acoustical properties of eight churches in Thessaloniki. The recordings are part of an article in Hesperia that examines two of the tested churches, the Acheiropoietos basilica and the cathedral of Hagia Sophia in order to provide objective and phenomenological accounts of how sound — both chanted and spoken — was produced and received. Framing the soundscape of each church through an examination of its original shape, furnishings, decoration, liturgy, music, and acoustics raises new questions about ties between the two buildings and the streets that connected them. This study deepens the understanding of the archaeoacoustics of Thessaloniki’s early churches.

  OA PDFDOI

• Kontakion in Hagia Sophia

  2021-01-01

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  In 2014, an international team of scholars measured the acoustical properties of eight churches in Thessaloniki. The recordings are part of an article in Hesperia that examines two of the tested churches, the Acheiropoietos basilica and the cathedral of Hagia Sophia in order to provide objective and phenomenological accounts of how sound — both chanted and spoken — was produced and received. Framing the soundscape of each church through an examination of its original shape, furnishings, decoration, liturgy, music, and acoustics raises new questions about ties between the two buildings and the streets that connected them. This study deepens the understanding of the archaeoacoustics of Thessaloniki’s early churches.

  OA PDFDOI

• <i>Holy, Holy, Holy:</i> Hearing the Voices of Angels

  Gesta · 2021 · 4 citations

  • Art
  • Literature
  • History

  Were Byzantine writings about the intermingling of human and angelic voices within ecclesiastical settings merely reflections of mystical theology, or were they actual observations about the movement of sound? Focusing on Thessaloniki, we consider how Byzantine writers described the voices of angels, how certain chants in the divine services animated the voices of celestial beings, and how and where painters represented angels, particularly within the city's monastic churches. We then turn to the study of the acoustical property of reverberation in eight Byzantine churches in the city in order to investigate whether undefined voices heard by subjective listening could be documented by objective, scientific testing.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Anoixantaria in Acheiropoietos

  2021-01-01

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  In 2014, an international team of scholars measured the acoustical properties of eight churches in Thessaloniki. The recordings are part of an article in Hesperia that examines two of the tested churches, the Acheiropoietos basilica and the cathedral of Hagia Sophia in order to provide objective and phenomenological accounts of how sound — both chanted and spoken — was produced and received. Framing the soundscape of each church through an examination of its original shape, furnishings, decoration, liturgy, music, and acoustics raises new questions about ties between the two buildings and the streets that connected them. This study deepens the understanding of the archaeoacoustics of Thessaloniki’s early churches.

  OA PDFDOI

• Christmas Troparion: Dry Studio

  2021-01-01

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  In 2014, an international team of scholars measured the acoustical properties of eight churches in Thessaloniki. The recordings are part of an article in Hesperia that examines two of the tested churches, the Acheiropoietos basilica and the cathedral of Hagia Sophia in order to provide objective and phenomenological accounts of how sound — both chanted and spoken — was produced and received. Framing the soundscape of each church through an examination of its original shape, furnishings, decoration, liturgy, music, and acoustics raises new questions about ties between the two buildings and the streets that connected them. This study deepens the understanding of the archaeoacoustics of Thessaloniki’s early churches.

  OA PDFDOI

• Test Tone in Acheiropoietos

  2021-01-01

  datasetOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  In 2014, an international team of scholars measured the acoustical properties of eight churches in Thessaloniki. The recordings are part of an article in Hesperia that examines two of the tested churches, the Acheiropoietos basilica and the cathedral of Hagia Sophia in order to provide objective and phenomenological accounts of how sound — both chanted and spoken — was produced and received. Framing the soundscape of each church through an examination of its original shape, furnishings, decoration, liturgy, music, and acoustics raises new questions about ties between the two buildings and the streets that connected them. This study deepens the understanding of the archaeoacoustics of Thessaloniki’s early churches.

  OA PDFDOI

• Soundscapes of Byzantium: The Acheiropoietos Basilica and the Cathedral of Hagia Sophia in Thessaloniki

  Hesperia The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens · 2018-01-01 · 22 citations

  article

  Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens - Volume 87, Number 1, January-March 2018

  PublisherDOI

Frequent coauthors

• Sunil Bharitkar

  Samsung (United States)

  58 shared

• Athanasios Mouchtaris

  Amazon (United States)

  29 shared

• Armand R. Tanguay

  University of Southern California

  24 shared

• Z. Karim

  University of Southern California

  23 shared

• Panayiotis Georgiou

  Apple (United Kingdom)

  22 shared

• A. Madhukar

  15 shared

• Kezhong Hu

  University of Southern California

  14 shared

• Philip Hilmes

  Amazon (United States)

  10 shared

Awards & honors

• 2006 World Technology Network Award