Psellos marvelled at the crowds filling the church of the Hagia Soros (Theotokos at Ta Kyrou). When he asked why, he was told that they were listening to the monk Ioannes Kroustalas. Psellos too heard him read (saints' lives?), was most impressed, and wrote an encomium. He went again to the same church to listen to the famous bishop called Taurenos, also recommended for his reading skills, but was disappointed by his poor performance