Invitation to the dance
The distinguished Slovakian maestro Juraj Valcuha conducts a series of works featuring the idea—and, above all, the feel—of dance. An entire orchestra twirling sensually as one to waltzes by Weber, Strauss and Ravel that range from the idyllic to the frenzied. The evening of dance continues with the celebrated violinist Simos Papanas bringing all his passion and virtuosity to bear on Saint-Saens’ much-loved Third Violin Concerto.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders
Music from the New World (V)
The final concert in our American music cycle explores the magical soundscapes of Jazz, which many have called “the key musical discovery of the 20th century”. The Manhattan Vibes, the celebrated jazz group founded by the Greek vibraphonist, Christos Rafalides, join forces with the Athens State Orchestra in an original programme which also includes much-loved symphonic works by Gershwin and Bernstein—both of whom included ‘jazz’ sounds and rhythms in their work.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders
Event to mark the 60th anniversary of the “Friends of Music” Society
Participating in the musical celebration marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Friends of Music Society, the Athens State Orchestra will be accompanying the world-famous Greek violinist, Leonidas Kavakos, in Brahms’ imposing concerto. Vassilis Christopoulos will be conducting.
Music from the New World (IV)
The overture to Bernstein’s operetta, Candide, and Barber’s lyric Violin Concerto—performed on this occasion by the Japanese violinist, Kyoko Tanino—share an irresistible tonal delicacy. The centrepiece of the programme, however, is the stirring Ninth Symphony by the Czech Romantic composer, Antonín Dvorak, whose experiences of the New World it conveys with passion and magnificence.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders
Music from the New World (III)
During turbulent periods of the 20th century for the Old World, the United States provided a number of European composers with a ‘New World’ and a political and artistic refuge. The programme of this fascinating concert by the Athens State Orchestra conducted by Vladimiros Symeonidis features a number of works by celebrated European composers which were written in—and, in some cases, directly inspired by—America.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders
Music from the New World (II)
Milestones in the history of American music, highpoints in the output of three American composers from the early, mid and late 20th century respectively, performed by the Athens State Orchestra. The experienced maestro Miltos Logiadis conducts a programme including celebrated works by the “Dean of American composers”, Aaron Copland, while the exceptional violinist, Antonis Sousamoglou, joins the orchestra to play the award-winning Second Concerto by the American composer of Greek descent, George Tsontakis.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders
Music from the New World (I)
This season’s new Athens State Orchestra concert cycle is entitled “Music of the New World” and features works from the American avant-garde along with works written on American soil by important European composers. In the first concert in the cycle, the multifaceted Canadian maestro Charles Olivieri-Munroe conducts American works of varying hues and styles ranging from MacDowell’s emblematic Second Piano Concerto, with Charalambos Angelopoulos at the keyboard, to Barber’s ever-popular Adagio.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders
Celebrating the 200th anniversary since the birth of Richard Wagner
The artistic world created by the great German composer and poet, Richard Wagner, continues to exert an undimmed fascination on all those that enter it. Two famous preludes to his musical dramas are the perfect introduction to the First Act of Die Walküre (The Valkyrie), one of the most lyrical and emotionally-laden moments in his entire Ring Cycle. The lead roles are sung by three Wagnerians of international renown.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders
Theme and variations
Theme and variations: a melody undergoing constant transformations, contracting or expanding and firing the composer’s imagination in original and exhilarating directions. Which is how Paganini’s theme gave rise to the sublime 18th variation in Rachmaninov’s Rhapsody, and how Elgar’s ‘enigmatic’ theme yielded the English composer’s sensual Nimrod variation. The Athens State Orchestra opens its new season with a series of imaginative musical metamorphoses performed under the baton of its artistic director, Vassilis Christopoulos.
Pre-concert talk, free for ticket holders
“Opening” of the Ancient Theatre of Messene
When DIAZOMA invited us to take part in the opening of Messene’s reconstructed Ancient Theatre, we were deeply moved and accepted with enthusiasm. On the evening, two internationally-renowned opera singers—the Rumanian soprano, Cellia Costea, and the Greek baritone, Dimitris Platanias—will perform famous arias and duets from the Italian opera, accompanied by the Athens State Orchestra under Vassilis Christopoulos in what promises to be a singular operatic treat in a truly magical setting.