Greece featured country on Cultural days of the European Central Bank October 25, 2007
Posted by grhomeboy in Hellenic Light Europe.Tags: Arts, Culture, European Union, Greece, Hellenic Light, Mikis Theodorakis
comments closed
Greece is the country featured on the occasion of the 5th anniversary of the Cultural Days of the European Central Bank (ECB), opened today and held until 13 November 2007.
The event is organised in co-operation with the Bank of Greece under the patronage of Mr Jean-Claude Trichet, President of the European Central Bank, and Nicholas C. Garganas, Governor of the Bank of Greece.
The programme brings a synthesis of Greece’s antique and contemporary culture to the City of Frankfurt, and includes concerts, dance performances, theatre, films, readings, photography exhibition and special events aimed at children. Some highlights from the programme include >
- Grand opening concert “Axion Esti”, oratorio by Mikis Theodorakis, Orchestra of Contemporary Music of the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation and Choir, narrated by Christian Nickel.
- Musical theatre by Stamatis Kraounakis and the musical theatre group Speira Speira with Kostas Makedonas.
- Ancient Greek drama “Prometheus Bound” performed by the National Theatre of Greece.
- Closing concert performed by the Orchestra of Colours and Maria Farantouri.
The aim of the Cultural Days of the ECB is to give the residents of Frankfurt, the Rhine-Main region and international guests the opportunity to acquaint themselves with the cultural traditions of countries of the European Union, reflecting the cultural diversity at the European Central Bank.
The complete programme is available on the ECB’s website > www.ecb.europa.eu/culturaldays
Antonis Kalogiannis performs at the Athens Concert Hall tonight October 15, 2007
Posted by grhomeboy in Music Life Greek.Tags: Athens, Athens Concert Hall, Greece, Greek Music, Mikis Theodorakis, Music
comments closed
The Greek seasoned singer Antonis Kalogiannis stood up straight in a crisp white shirt, his favorite color, was serious and chose his words carefully at a news conference at the Athens Concert Hall last week ahead of a virtually sold-out performance at the prestigious venue tonight.
Kalogiannis will be joined by Maria Farandouri and Georges Moustaki as part of the venue’s “Bridges” series. The concert is co-sponsored by Kinisi Politon, a non-profit association that promotes the values of civil society for a solution to the Cyprus problem.
The 67-year-old singer made his recording debut in 1970, four years after having begun performing, when poetry stood as an important aspect of songwriting.
Kalogiannis will present Mikis Theodorakis’s “Epiphania Averof” whose lyrics were provided by the Nobel Prize-winning Greek poet Giorgos Seferis, as well as other material. “Epiphania Averof” was no random choice, nor is it any act of conceit, as is often the case among aging Greek singers who begin to sense the passage of time. Kalogiannis first performed this Theodorakis composition in 1970, in Paris, joined by Yves Montand as the narrator. But for years he felt a desire to perform “Epiphania Averof” again. “That’s because this work has never become as well known as it should have in Greece” Kalogiannis told the news conference.
Reflecting his passion for poetry, Kalogiannis will also perform songs featuring lyrics by other celebrated Greek poets, including Costas Varnalis, Tassos Leivaditis and Nikos Gatsos, as well as music from his career’s post-Theodorakis era.
Responding to a question on whether he considered his career as still active, Kalogiannis quipped, “It’s just the clocks that continue to tick”, while adding that his shows are limited to small venues. “I don’t need to tell you that the club circuit is full of trouble, noise, flower throwing, plate breaking and dodgy figures”.
Athens Concert Hall, 1 Kokkali and Vasilissis Sofias Avenue, Athens, tel 210 7282333.
Bejart Ballet returns to Athens with his favorite choreographies October 6, 2007
Posted by grhomeboy in Arts Events Greece, Ballet Dance Opera.Tags: Arts, Athens, Ballet, Culture, Greece, Mikis Theodorakis
comments closed
Ballet Lausanne to perform highlights at the Pallas Theater > Maurice Bejart and his Ballet Lausanne will be presenting two performances at the Pallas Theater on October 24 and 25 that are dedicated to Greece and the Athenian public.
“L’amour – La danse” is a compilation of Bejart’s best choreographies, with music ranging from Berlioz and Mozart all the way to Mikis Theodorakis. The performances have been set up by the Hellenic Society for Disabled Children (ELEPAP), which is celebrating 70 years of operation this year.
Bejart, a living dance legend, is much loved in Greece, where he has appeared with his 20th Century Ballet at the Herod Atticus Theater. At the Pallas, the performances will allow fans to revisit the past and to celebrate with him his 80th birthday on the occasion of this retrospective.
For these two very special performances, Bejart has chosen to present highlights from the following: “Le sacre du printemps,” “Romeo et Juliette,” “Heliogabale,” “Le chant du compagnon errant,” “Sept danses grecques,” “Arepo” and “Brel et Barbara” for the first part of the program.
In the evenings’ second part, the audience will see extracts from “Rumi,” “Casta Diva,” “Romeo et Juliette,” “Entre deux guerres,” “I Was Born To Love You,” “Concerto 21,” “Und so Weiter,” “U2” and “The Show Must Go On.”
For information and tickets > ELEPAP, 16 Kononos Street, Pangrati, Athens, tel 210 7254726 and the Pallas Theater, 5 Voukourestiou Street, Athens, tel 210 3213100. Shows begin at 9 p.m.
Coming poetry and book launches in Athens October 4, 2007
Posted by grhomeboy in Arts Events Greece, Books Life Greek.Tags: Arts, Athens, Books, Culture, Events, Greece, Mikis Theodorakis, Museums, Music, Poetry
comments closed
Author and translator Gail Holst-Warhaft’s first and critically acclaimed foray into poetry, “Penelope’s Confessions,” will be presented in its bilingual edition by Cosmos Publications at the Ianos bookstore cafe, 24 Stadiou Street, Athens, on Monday, October 8.
The Australian-born scholar of ancient and modern Greek life, literature and music is adjunct associate professor in the departments of classics and comparative literature at Cornell University and works as a freelance writer, poet and translator. Following her studies in Australia, Holst-Warhaft came to Greece, where she worked as a musician and journalist during the 1970s. She also played harpsichord in the orchestras of Mikis Theodorakis, Dionysis Savvopoulos and Mariza Koch.
Koch will be at Ianos bookstore to open the event with a recital of poems she has set to music, while poet Katerina Anghelaki-Rooke and author Iakovos Kampanellis will discuss the book and its author. The event begins at 6 p. m. and attendance is free of charge.
Tomorrow at Eleftheroudakis Bookstore, 17 Panepistimiou Street, Athens, Pascal Bruckner, the prolific French writer of the nouveaux philosophes school, and author of “Temptation of Innocence” and “Bitter Moon”, which was made into a film by Roman Polanski in 1992, will be signing the Greek editions of his books from 5-7 p. m.
Israeli poet Rami Saari will also be in town this week for the presentation of his poetry collection “Under the Feet of the Rain”, published in Greek by Oxy, at Patakis bookstore, 65 Academias Street, Athens, at 7 p. m. tomorrow.
Saari studied and taught Semitic and Uralic languages at the Universities of Helsinki, Budapest and Jerusalem and got his PhD in linguistics at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. By January 2006 Saari had published seven books and translated more than 40 books, both prose and poetry, from Albanian, Estonian, Finnish, Greek, Hungarian, Portuguese and Spanish into Hebrew. He has been awarded the Prime Minister’s Prize for Literature twice (1996, 2003), and the Tchernikhovsky Prize for his translations (2006).
On Tuesday, October 9, Benaki Museum Director Angelos Delivorias, writer Philippos Drakontaidis and Athens University professor Giorgos Maniatis will present A-I. D. Metaxas’s new book “Ypainiktika Portreta” (Suggestive Portraits: The Imperceptible Depiction of Authority). The presentation will begin at 8 p. m. at the Benaki Museum, 1 Koumbari Street and Vasilissis Sofias Avenue, Kolonaki, Athens.
What’s On > in Athens September 29, 2007
Posted by grhomeboy in Arts Events Greece, Arts Exhibitions Greece, Arts Festivals, Music Life Greek.Tags: Arts, Athens, Culture, Events, Exhibitions, Festivals, Greece, Mikis Theodorakis, Music
comments closed
Theodorakis Orchestra Concert, Saturday and Sunday
The Mikis Theodorakis Popular Orchestra will join forces with well-known Greek singers and artists for two three-hour concerts with the parallel screening of artworks, in aid of those stricken by the recent fires, at the Herod Atticus Theater. Tickets are available at the Hellenic Festival box office, 39 Panepistimiou Street, Athens, tel 210 3272000.
At the Ancient Herod Atticus Theater, Acropolis, Athens, nearest metro station “Acropolis”.
Multiculturalism Festival in Athens > To Sunday
The Anthropos Greek Center for the Promotion of Volunteerism is organizing a mini-festival with concerts, dance, video screenings, photography exhibitions, international delicacies, workshops and more at Heroon Square in Maroussi, in collaboration with various NGOs and immigrant communities.
For information call 210.883.8914, or visit www.anthropos.gr
Guided Walking Tour of Athens > Sunday
The Friends of the Australian Archaeological Institute are organizing a guided walking tour of central Athens’s Byzantine monuments with Dr Stavros Paspalas, which will start at the Aghia Triada Church, 21 Filellinon Street, near Syntagma Square, at noon on Sunday.
AAIA, for information call 210 9243256.
Controversial history school book on sale? September 27, 2007
Posted by grhomeboy in Education.Tags: Education, Greece, History, Mikis Theodorakis, News
comments closed
Dumped sixth-grade history book to be made available in stores
The controversial sixth-grade history textbook that was withdrawn by the government on Tuesday is to be made available in bookshops, Kathimerini daily reports, citing sources yesterday. The team that wrote the book is also reconsidering plans to make the material available online because of fears that critics will hack into their site.
Some 1,000 university professors and lecturers issued a statement yesterday criticizing the government’s decision to withdraw the book. However, renowned composer Mikis Theodorakis backed the move, saying the book had been part of an effort to “deconstruct Greekness”.
What’s On in Athens > exhibitions, seminars and auditions September 25, 2007
Posted by grhomeboy in Architecture Exhibitions, Arts Events Greece, Arts Exhibitions Greece, Arts Museums, Ballet Dance Opera, Music Life Greek.Tags: Architecture Greece, Arts, Events, Exhibitions, Greece, Mikis Theodorakis, Museums, Music, Opera, Photography
comments closed
GothicMed > Athens > Opens tonight
An exhibition recording how the Gothic architectural style spread and influenced monuments across the Mediterranean, with photographs and other material, will go on display at the Byzantine and Christian Museum tonight. The exhibition is part of the European program “Mediterranean Gothic Architecture” and will run to October 21. It will be open 8 a.m. to 7.30 p.m. Tuesdays to Sundays.
Byzantine and Christian Museum, 22 Vasilissis Sofias Avenue, Kolonaki, Athens, tel 210 7211027.
Mikis Theodorakis Tribute > Athens > Opens tonight
An exhibition-tribute to the childhood and early years of much-loved composer Mikis Theodorakis, with works by Nikolas Klironomos, will open at the Ekfrasi – Yianna Grammatopoulou Gallery tonight and run to October 6. The gallery will be open 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesdays to Fridays as well as 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays.
Ekfrasi Gallery, 9A Valaoritou Street, Kolonaki, Athens, tel 210 3607598.
Photography Seminars > Athens > Starts October 4
Platon Rivellis will conduct a series of two-hour seminars exploring the similarities and differences between the visual approaches to photography and cinema for five consecutive weeks at the Hellenic American Union, starting October 4. There will be weekly sessions starting at 8.30 p.m. and the cost is 15 euros for the entire series or 5 euros per individual seminar. Registration is already under way. The seminars will delve into photography and cinema in the 1920s and examine the work of acclaimed filmmakers such as Buster Keaton, Fritz Lang and others.
Hellenic American Union, 22 Massalias Street, Athens, tel 210 3680052.
Greek National Opera > Athens > Saturday
The Greek National Opera will hold auditions to hire five permanent choir members, in the positions of soprano, mezzo, tenor and basso, on Saturday at 10 a.m. Contestants will be asked to perform an aria of Mozart as well as an aria of Donizetti, Bellini, Verdi or Puccini, an aria by a Greek composer in Greek, prima vista choral extracts and another aria in a different language. The deadline for applications is 2 p.m. on Friday.
For information > National Opera Offices, 18A Harilaou Trikoupi Street, 5th Floor, Athens, tel 210 3614433.
HomeboyMediaNews 