Almost all the hymns of the Syriac Church can be attributed to one of the following five hymnographers.
Mor Aprem (St.Ephrem the Syrian)
Mor Severious (St.Severus of Antioch)
Mor Yakob (St.Jacob of Serugh)
Mor Balai (Chor-Episcopos Balai of Aleppo) , Though Mor Balai is popularly known an the Chor-Episcopos of Aleppo, he later became the Metropolitan of Balsh.
No one in olden times happened to write down Mor Balai’s biography even Jacob of Bartelli and Bar Hebraeus had no precise information about him. However, some contemporary writers think he was one of Mor Ephrem’s pupils. More correctly, he had studied under one of St.Eprhem’s pupils. What we do know about his is that he was a Chor Episcopa of the Church of Aleppo. He was also a companion and an associate of Acacius, Metropolitan of Aleppo, whose death he witnessed in the year 432 and whom he had eulogized in five eloquent madroshos composed in five syllabic meter. According to Bar Shushan, he became the Bishop of the city of Balsh (Perpalisus) today called Maskanah, which lies south east of Aleppo. A manuscript of the Beth Bazo transcribed in the year 1716 kept the Church in Damascus also mentions Mor Balai as the Bishop of Balsh. Furthermore, he was called “a Bishop” in a table containing the name of our scholars, transcribed by Isaac, metropolitan of Cyprus in 1550. Most likely he died in the fifth decade of the fifth century, because his name was not mentioned in the two synods of 449 and 451. Duval is mistaken in counting him among the scholars of the fourth century.
Balai composed many poems in the five-syllabic meter, which is ascribed to him. Most his hymns became part of our Church liturgy, concerning repentance and the memorial of the departed. It is quite unfortunate that no one has cared to compile his poems. In 1902, Zettersteen published in Leipzig one hundred thirty four hymns ascribed to him, sixty five bear his name and sixty nine are thought of his. However it is difficult to distinguish his hymns because they are mixed up with those of other poets.
(source: The Scattered Pearls page 243: Patriarch Aphrem I)
Shemavun Kukkoyo (Simon the Potter)
Simon was a magnificent church poet and hymnographer. He was born at the village of Kishir in the province of Antioch in the Roman Empire. He took on the making of pottery as a craft and hence became well known as “the Potter” or Quqoyo in Syriac. While working on his wheel, Simon composed eloquent and elegant religious poetry sung in a beautiful melody which he called Quqoyo. His poetry covered many subjects, such as the Nativity of our Lord, His Resurrection and His miracles; Christ on the Cross, prophets, the Virgin Mary the Mother of God, the saints, the dead and repentance. Around the year 510, Mor Jacob [of Sarug] heard of him while on some of his journeys and went to see him. He heard him singing these fine songs in his shop. He praised him and encouraged him to continue composing. He took copies of these songs; it is said that in 514 he showed these poems to Patriarch Severus after he translated parts of them into Greek, which made the Patriarch urge the poet to compose more poems of this nature.
Simon also composed songs on the Nativity of the Lord in other melodies, of which 28 lines only came down to us. Simon had pious, learned and well-mannered companions of his type who shared with him the composition of songs. These companions were called the quqoye, whose poems have entered the church’s liturgy. Jacob of Edessa, from whom the above biography, of Simon Ququoyo comes says, “the shop of Simon and his wheel are still known in the village of Kishir until this day” (that is AD 700 to 708)
(source: The Scattered Pearls: Patriarch Aphrem I)