Richard Barrett is an Orthodox church musician, choral singer, and scholar. He studied Byzantine music under Ioannis Arvanitis of Athens and continued his study with John Michael Boyer and Grammenos Karanos. In 2015, he completed a Performer's Certificate in Byzantine Music from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology. He is the protopsaltis ("first cantor") at Holy Dormition Greek Orthodox Church in Somerville, MA. From 2005 to 2012, he was the cantor and choir director at All Saints Orthodox Church in Bloomington, Indiana, and then most recently he was cantor and choir director at Holy Apostles Greek Orthodox Church in Indianapolis. He sings regularly with Cappella Romana and has also sung with the Patriarch Tikhon Choir. Previously, he has performed with ensembles such as the East/West Festival Chorale in Cincinnati, the Josquin Singers in San Francisco, Tudor Choir and the Seattle Opera Chorus in the Pacific Northwest, and in Indiana, the Pro Arte Singers, Collegium Musicum, and the American Guild of Organists Festival Choir. He has worked with conductors such as Alexander Lingas, Peter Jermihov, Vladimir Gorbik, Paul Hillier, John Poole, and John Harbison.  

A Ph.D. candidate in the Department of History at Indiana University, he is completing his dissertation, titled “Civic Devotions to the Mother of God in Late Antique Constantinople,” under the direction of Deborah Deliyannis. From 2014–15, he was Resident Fellow at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology, and he has presented scholarly papers at events such as the International Conference on Patristic Studies at the University of Oxford, the North American Patristics Society, and the Patristic Symposium of the Georges Florovsky Society at Princeton University. In addition, he holds a Bachelor of Music in Vocal Performance and a Master of Arts in Ancient History, both from Indiana University. Richard has been an invited speaker, cantor, and clinician at Greek Orthodox parishes throughout the country. He is the Artistic Director of the Saint John of Damascus Society, which supports Orthodox musical education and outreach.