Leonidas Kavakos with the A.S.O – Offer of Music and Musical Offer 2019-2020 06-12-2019
Appearances by Leonidas Kavakos are now a global musical event. In Greece, especially when times are hard, pride comes with expectation. Leonidas Kavakos wants to bring high-quality music to the Greek provinces. For the fourth consecutive year, Kavakos joins forces with the Athens State Orchestra, with whom his connection runs long and deep, waiving his fee to help the Orchestra meet its many financial obligations. The proceeds from the concerts will be donated to charity.
Past and present writings
One of the Athens State Orchestra's most active ensembles, METALLON has been a consistent and high-quality presence on the concert scene in recent years. For their concert in the Mitropoulos Hall, they have decided to spotlight their technical and interpretative qualities by applying them to different parts of the repertoire. The Corfiote tuba player, Vikentios Gionanidis, who enjoys a glittering career on the European musical stage, is both the visible and invisible protagonist of the concert in his roles as conductor and orchestrator.
70 years since the death of Nikos Skalkottas – Concert within the Skalkottas convention
As we near the end of Skalkottas Year, we return once again to the work of the great Greek exponent of the 20th-century musical avant-garde. The young double bassist, Michael Semsis, already the first principal bassist of the legendary Gewandhaus orchestra, performs Skalkottas’ staggeringly demanding Concerto, while Stephen Tsialis presents parts of his largely unknown Second Suite. The programme includes the premiere of the symphonic work "Neottian", which won the admiration of the jury in the international “Nikos Skalkottas” composition competition.
Sunday morning at the Megaron: Music for... our eyes!
What could the plucky young wizard Harry Potter, the resourceful archaeologist Indiana Jones, and the likeable alien E.T. possibly have in common? The music accompanying the adventures of all three beloved big screen heroes is by the American John Williams, one of the most important composers of film music ever. Konstantinos Diminakis and the Athens State Orchestra invite you to enjoy his wonderful music once again!
Musical promenades at the Museums II - Chamber music concert from the Young Musicians’ Academy of the Athens State Orchestra
The training our young colleagues receive at the Athens State Orchestra Young Musicians' Academy could hardly fail to include chamber music, that indispensable school that teaches musicians to listen to, understand and respond to one another. We are certain that our students in the strings and brass classes will give of their best and move everyone who places themselves in their hands for the duration of the concert!
Beethoven: 250 years – 70 years since the death of Strauss
The Athens State Orchestra is delighted to be performing a new symphonic work by the dynamic Greek composer, Philippos Tsalahouris. The piece is a tribute to Lord Byron, an emblematic figure in 19th-century Philhellenism. Our orchestra's lead oboe, Yiannis Oikonomou, abandons his stand for a time to play the solo in Richard Strauss’ Concerto, a wonder of lyricism and maturity. The concert, conducted by the experienced Loukas Karytinos with his customary precision, will come to a joyous end with a classical jewel of the symphonic repertoire, Beethoven’s Fourth.
Heroes Ι
A hero is anyone who, visibly or not, places the collective over their own personal good, and who sacrificially does what must be done without sparing effort, time or even their own life. The "Heroes” cycle explores how music and heroism go hand in hand, with the latter often inspiring the former. In the cycle's first concert, under the baton of the up-and-coming conductor Ektoras Tartanis, the Athens State Orchestra focuses on important works by Greek composers which relate to the Greek struggle for nationhood. The programme is brought to an end by the epic violin concerto by our own great "musical hero”, Nikos Skalkottas, performed by the virtuosic Jonian Ilias Kadesha.
Beethoven: 250 years
Following on from his concert last year with the Athens State Orchestra, which delighted audiences and our musicians alike, the dynamic Belgian maestro Michel Tilkin returns to the podium to renew our relationship in a performance of Tchaikovsky’s heart-rending final Symphony. Beethoven's work deserves this season's tribute, given that 2020 will mark the 250th anniversary of the birth of a composer generally considered the greatest of all time. Against this backdrop, the distinguished pianist Charalambos Angelopoulos promises a fresh reading of the composer's extroverted and subtle second Concerto.
Musical promenades at the Museums Ι - Skalkottas and his impact on chamber music
A constant and dynamic presence in the Athens State Orchestra's chamber music concerts, the Athens String Quartet proposes an entirely Greek programme for this season centred on the great Nikos Skalkottas —an understandable choice, given that 2019 is Skalkottas Year. Alongside the composer's sensual Third Quartet and Dances, we will be hearing some of the more remarkable works from his repertoire —works which amply demonstrate that there is a good deal of fascinating quality music lies hidden in the Greek repertoire.
Opening concert - Breakthroughs and Pioneers I
The history of Man and Art doesn't always run in a straight line. And the speed at which it changes over time is anything but constant, as great men and women fueled with creativity, imagination and confidence in their ground-breaking visions have altered —and will continue to alter— the course of history, exposing us to unprecedented possibilities in the process. This year's thematic cycle, which is entitled "Breakthroughs and Pioneers”, explores works and composers who succeeded in opening up new horizons in music —and, to a considerable extent, in imposing them. As it is every year, the opening concert of our 2019–2020 season will be conducted by the Athens State Orchestra's artistic director, Stefanos Tsialis; this year, it will feature the celebrated pianist Giorgos-Emmanuel Lazaridis.