Double Reeds
Yiannis Oikonomou, oboe
Christina Pantelidou, English horn
Alexandros Oikonomou, bassoon
Markellos Chryssicos, harpsichord
Christmas Concert of “METALLON” brass quintet
Works by Georg Friedrich Handel, Johann Sebastian Bach, Leroy Anderson, Irving Berlin, Christmas hymns and traditional Christmas carols, in special arrangements for brass quintet.
Panagiotis Kesaris, trumpet
Giannis Karabetsos, trumpet
Kostas Avgerinos, trombone
Kostas Siskos, horn
Georgios Rarakos, tuba
On both sides of the Channel in the first half of the 20th century
Four outstanding soloists join forces with the Athens String Quartet to play works by Maurice Ravel, Sir Arnold Bax and Jean Françaix—composers all who lived and worked on one side or other of the English Channel during the first half of the Twentieth century—on a rare combination of instruments. The common thread running through the programme is the wide-ranging musical affinities revealed in the works—affinities which should come as no surprise given that the leading exponent of musical impressionism, Maurice Ravel, influenced both Bax’s British version of impressionism and the style of the young Françaix—in whom Ravel was the first to spot “that most fruitful gift an artist can possess: curiosity”.
Christina Pantelidou, oboe – cor anglais
Kostas Tzekos, clarinet
Gogo Xagara, harp
Athens String Quartet:
Apollon Grammatikopoulos, violin
Panayiotis Tziotis, violin
Paris Anastasiadis, viola
Isidoros Sideris, cello
Viola Power!
A concert for the… “restitution of the historical truth” by 10 viola players of the Athens State Orchestra in works by Johann Sebastian Bach, Georges Bizet, Dmitri Shostakovich, Kurt Weill, Astor Piazzolla, Paul Hindemith etc.
A lost dream…
The chamber music ensemble ENODON takes us on a journey through the music of the interwar period, juxtaposing German music-theatre and cabaret, on the one hand, and Greek operetta and the light music of the day—in which ‘classical composers’ often did extremely well for themselves camouflaged behind pseudonyms—on the other. Accordingly, the first part of the concert is dedicated to Kurt Weill and the second to leading lights of the Greek music scene between the wars: Nikos Hadjiapostolou, Theofrastos Sakellaridis and Giannis Konstantinidis/Kostas Giannidis.
Nelli Oikonomidou, violin
Mikhail Smirnov, viola
Ivi Papathanassiou, cello
Panayiotis Kaisaris, trumpet
Kostas Avgerinos, trombone
Efi Papathomaidi, piano
Family Concert (II) (2014)
What business has a small and distinctly cute elephant driving a car through the streets of the city in a sharp suit with an elderly lady at his side? What is small but brave Peter doing on a branch whispering meaningfully to the bird flying beside him? You will find out the answers to these and a good many other questions at out ‘fairytale’ concert!
Family Concert (I) (1)
The Athens State Orchestra takes its friends young and old on a tour around the sounds of the families of instruments in the orchestra, guided by Britten’s wonderful Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra. This will be followed by a composer giving a hilarious talk on his thoughts and feelings, his pencil and eraser, even his… dinner as he works furiously on his new symphonic work!
Colourful sounds
When the precise and the cerebral are combined with a wellspring of inspiration, truly irresistible music is sure to result. This is what audiences are invited to hear for themselves in the final concert of the winter season, which features Vassilis Christopoulos on the podium and the distinguished Japanese violinist Sayaka Shoji. Surrender yourselves to a feast of sounds, tones and timbres ranging from the atmospheric consonance of Dalbavie and Ravel’s ravishing harmonies to the ‘icy’ sensuality of Prokovief’s Violin Concerto.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders
Brahms Cycle (V)
After his unforgettable appearance last season, the great Russian pianist Nikolai Demidenko returns to Athens to interpret Brahms’ Second Concerto, a work of truly epic length and difficulty. The eminent conductor, violinist and educator, Christoph Poppen, conducts the composer’s final symphony, a distillation of his maturity and depth, bringing our extensive tribute to the great German composer to an end with the requisite magnificence.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders