Musical Promenades: Regarding Loss
Mendelssohn composed his Sixth Quartet after the death of his sister (1847), while Shostakovich dedicated his Seventh Quartet to the memory of his first wife. Both works are imbued with a sense of loss for a loved one, the pain of the void they leave behind, and the need to externalize this pain redemptively through music.
Musical promenades: Ideology and spirituality: Mikis Theodorakis in conversation with his teacher Olivier Messiaen
Mikis Theodorakis' apprenticeship under the great French 20th-century composer (and teacher), Olivier Messiaen, played a decisive role in moulding his musical personality. This evening’s programme consists of works by student and master both and sets out to explore the similarities and differences between them, contrasting the spirituality of Messiaen’s music with Theodorakis’ earthy, fiery, revolutionary writing.
Musical Promenades: Moonlight Serenade
Who said the brass sound is only good for blaring fanfares, blood-curdling martial motifs and ponderous musical phrases? Because trumpets, trombones, tubas and horns can play tender, heart-felt melodies with equal ease, or bring the requisite sensuality to passages serenading the night, the moon, and the truths our souls can only speak once the sun has set...
Moonlight Serenade
New Orleans Traditional arr. Jock McKenzie
When the Saints
GEORGE DAVID WEISS (1921 – 2010) / BOB THIELE (1922 – 1996) arr. Jock McKenzie
What a Wonderful World
GLENN MILLER arr. John Iveson
Little Brown Jug (Miller for Ten)
NACIO HERB BROWN (1896 – 1964) / ARTHUR FREED (1894 – 1973) arr. Jock McKenzie
Singin' in the Rain
WILLIAM CHRISTOPHER HANDY (1873 – 1958) arr. M. Allen
St. Louis Blues March
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH (1906 – 1975) arr. A. Verhaert
Jazz Suite No. 1
DUKE ELLINGTON (1899 – 1974) / JUAN TIZOL (1900 – 1984) arr. Jock McKenzie
Caravan
JIMMY MCHUGH (1894 – 1969) arr. Ryan Hume
On the Sunny Side of the Street
DIZZY GILLESPIE (1917 – 1993) / FRANK PAPARELLI (1917 – 1973) arr. Jock McKenzie
A Night in Tunisia
CAB CALLOWAY (1907 – 1994) arr. Adam Brown
Minnie the Moocher
DUKE ELLINGTON arr. Jock McKenzie
It Don't Mean a Thing
Musical Promenades: the four Seasons
Vivaldi's Four Seasons clearly needs no introduction: one of the best-loved works in the history of Music, it is ideally complemented here by Astor Piazzolla's Four Seasons of Buenos Aires, written by the creator of "Nuevo Tango", which offer a less naturalistic and far much more urban sense of the changing seasons.
2024 12 09 Musical promenades: From New York with Love
Three musicians at the height of their powers performing three chamber works written in America, and specifically in cosmopolitan New York. From Crumb's eerie, evocative music which takes us on a journey into the depths of prehistory, to Liebermann's neo-romantic emotionally-charged style, the works performed are among the most important composed during the 20th century.
2023 11 25 Musical Promenades: Wind Gala Concert
Ever proud of its woodwind players, the Athens State Orchestra offers a tribune to one of its oldest historic ensembles, which, with new members, continues to give audiences the chance to experience rarely performed works.
2024 11 11 Musical Promenades: Czech celebration
The Aenaon String Quartet commemorates the 200th anniversary of the birth of the great Czech Romantic composer, Bedřich Smetana, with a performance of his Quartet in D minor. The Quintet is performed alongside two other gems of Czech –and, more generally, Central European chamber music– to provide additional perspective on this important work.
2024 10 21 Musical Promenades: The war of ways
A musical fairy tale with music and an original text by Nefeli Liouta, the "War of Ways" attempts to familiarize young and old listeners with the core terms and atmospheres of Music, while simultaneously stressing the importance of cooperation, balance and respect for identity and diversity.
2024 10 07 Musical promenades: Musical Smyrna: a musical journey into time
Smyrna had always a wide and long-lasting musical tradition, adopting richness from many sources, so many as were the communities of this city: Turks, Greeks, Armenians, Arabs, Jewish but also Europeans, they all were exchanging cultural and musical “expretise” through their day-to-day interaction. This is why music in Smyrna had always been a blend of many different genres. Musicians who ever visited Smyrna, those who were living there, those who were born and achieved great things with Smyrna’s memory, will be the phares showing us the way to this unique musical journey. Works by Edward Elgar, Giannis Konstantinidis (Kostas Giannidis) and Manolis Kalomoiris from Smyrna’s erudite music, will stand side by side with traditional and popular music of the City, whether known or unknown to the audience, as well as with new compositions by Dimitris Gouzios and Alekos Vretos, in an eyeful towards future, and with a new composition written for the Quintet with Smyrna’s traditional instrument, oud.
Dodecanese suite (1948)
Edward Elgar
In Smyrna (1905) - transcription for string quintet by Alekos Vretos, 2022
Alekos Vretos
Smyrna Icons for string quintet and oud (2020)
Dimitris Gouzios
Smyrna swaying (2022)
Cinuçen Tanrıkorur
Nihavend Saz Semaisi (Mehtapta Yakamozlar) (1986)
Resat Aysu
Nihavend Saz Semasi (1953) - transcription for string quintet by Alekos Vretos, 2022
Simon Shaheen: Fantasia on oud and string quintet (1990)
2024 09 22 Chinese Lunar
Leading artists from China and Greece will combine their talents to perform works by celebrated composers. The Greek pianist Philippos Tsalahouris, under the baton of the Chinese maestro Qian Junping and accompanied by the members of the Athens State Orchestra joined by guest artists including the violinist Weng Qingzhu, the pianist Yu Hanwen, the flutist Stratos Pogosyan, the pianist Petros Chochlakakis, the synthesist Jiao Jie, Sofia Delli and the pianist Andreas Tsouvalas, will perform works by Mozart, Beethoven, Wieniawski, Hadjidakis and other composers.