We are delighted to welcome everyone to our 29th Festival, with an ambitious program based around concerts featuring the Benyounes Quartet and the product of choral workshops.

Our opening concert features the return to Paxos of the flautist Ria Georgiadis after her beautiful summer performance of 2 years ago, with her piano partner Sven Birch.

This also marks the start of a series of workshops again under the inspired leadership of Dimitra Trypani, whose remarkable new composition “Once Upon a Time in Paxos” was toured around Greece last winter to great acclaim; always with choirmaster Aneljia Stefanova.

The concert by the highly praised Pleiades polyphonic vocal group of 4 women will also include work from their masterclasses, to be followed at the end of the week by an outdoor performance in the magical setting of Lakka School of the new work stemming from the Interdisciplinary Choir Workshop.

In a new direction for this year, we have invited a fast rising string quartet and pianist to join us for a full week and create 3 concerts. The Benyounes Quartet were one of only 2 UK finalists in the Wigmore Hall competition, and bring a wide program of work, together with an informal evening for you to talk with them and enjoy some more informal music.

These changes would have been impossible without the newly formed “Friends of Paxos” Nonprofit Organization at the heart of the festival organization on the island.

We are particularly grateful to old and new sponsors who are supporting us in these difficult times, coupled with the enthusiasm of our loyal audience. We hope you will enjoy this program; help us prepare for next year’s 30th Anniversary celebration!

Nick Thompson, chairman

SATURDAY AUGUST 22nd 8pm

CONCERT – EVENT

Meet the performers: learn about this year’s program & workshops in relaxed surroundings and with musical surprises.

Free Entry

Venue: Old Loggos School

SUNDAY AUGUST 23rd 8pm

CONCERT: Flute (Ria Georgiadi) & Piano (Sven Birch)

Ria Georgiadi’s repertoire spans over the entire spectrum of the flute literature. She has recorded for the Greek and Austrian Radio. A great number of compositions for the entire flute family have been dedicated to and premiered by her. Researcher and sought after pedagogue.

Sven Birch is a danish pianist and conductor, Univ. Professor and head of the Department of Keyboard Instruments at the Bruckner University Linz, head of the Piano Academy “Center Of Piano Art” in Linz. He devotes an important part of his artistic output to contemporary music as well as jazz and improvisation.

Program:

Franz Xaver Mozart (1791 – 1844): Rondo in e-minor for flute and piano

Gaetano Donizetti (1797 – 1848): Sonata in C-major for flute and piano

Michael Amann (1964): Νεφελοκοκκυγία for flute and piano (WP)

Mathieu-André Reichert (1830-1880): Fantaisie melancholique op.1 pour Flûte et Piano

Charles-Marie Widor (1844-1937): Suite pour Flûte et Piano Op. 34/1

Venue: Old Loggos School

AUUST 25th ERGON ENSEMBLE CONCERT 8pm

Founded in 2008 Ergon Ensemble is one of Greece’s leading contemporary music ensembles; working in close collaboration with Ensemble Modern of Frankfurt, a world-leading ensemble of new music, they aim mainly in promoting Greek music in the International Music Scene.

Participating musicians: Nikos Nikopoulos (flute), Kostas Tzekos, (clarinet) · Georgia Xagara, (harp) ·

Christos Sakellaridis, (piano) · Panagiotis Tziotis, (violin). Ensemble Manager: Αλέξανδρος Μούζας

Venue: Old Loggos School

Program:

Luigi Dallapiccola, Quaderno musicale di Annalibera (1952) for solo piano (14’)

i. Simbolo

ii. Accenti

iii. Contrapunctus primus

iv. Linee

v. Contrapunctus secondus

vi. Fregi

vii. Andantino amoroso e Contrapunctus tertius

viii. Ritmi

ix. Colore

x. Ombre

xi. Quartina

Francesco Pennisi, Introduzione al Grecale (1984) for flute and harp (3’)

Giacinto Scelsi, Ixor (1956) for solo clarinet (4’)

Giacinto Scelsi, Ko-Lho (1966) for flute and clarinet (8’)

Luciano Berio, 6 Encores (1965-1990) for solo piano (8’) (fragments)

i. Brin (1990)

iii. Wasserklavier (1965)

v. Luftklavier (1985)

Ivan Fedele, Imaginary Skylines (1990-1) for flute and harp (9’)

Gian Carlo Menotti, Trio (1996) for violin, clarinet & piano (15’)

i. Capriccio

ii. Romanza

iii. Envoi

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THURSDAY, AUGUST 27th, 8pm

CONCERT by the WOMEN’S VOCAL GROUP “PLEIADES”

Also performing: the Polyphonic workshop participants.

Pleiades Vocal women’s group was created in 2006 in Thessaloniki. Their goal is to contribute, through intense artistic creation, to the international recognition of the Greek traditional music so as to mobilize all those who can serve and transmit it to the new generations. They were selected to represent Greece in the 14th Biennale of New Artists of Europe and the Mediterranean with “The crossing” (a performance based in Epiros polyphonic songs).

Songs to be performed:

* Καλή ώρα να ’χουν οι ελιές/ Kali ora nahoun I elies

* Φίλοι μ’ καλώς ορίσατε / Filim kalos orisate

* Το τραγούδι της δουλειάς / to tragoudi tis doulias

* Τι κακό ’καμα ο καημένος / ti kako kama o kaimenos

* Oria mu pisulina

* Το γιασεμί / to giasemi

* Γιάννη μου το μαντήλι σου / Gianni mou to mandili sou

* Άντρα μου πάει / Andra mou pai

* Σε πολλές χαρές που πήγα / se polles hares pou piga

* Τα πάθη μου να γράψω /ta pathi mou na grapso

* Ergen dedo

* Το τραγούδι της κούνιας / to tragoudi tis kounias

* Oria mu fenese

* Πέρα σ’ εκείνο το βουνό / pera sekino to vouno

* Domakine

* Το αλφαβητάρι της αγάπης / to alfavitari tis agapis

* Ενύχτωσε κι εβράδιασε / enihtose ki evradiase

* La lega

* Το Μαργούδι κι ο Αλεξανδρής / to Margoudi ki o Alexandris

The following members of the Pliades singers will be taking part: Despina Kalpenidou, Ioulia Routziou, Georgia Tenta, Roula Tsernou.

Venue: Old Lakka School

FRIDAY, AUGUST 28th, 8pm

Interdisciplinary Choral Workshop Concert: “THE TWIN MOTHERS”

Participating among others are: students of the Music Studies Department of the Ionian Univ. members of the choral groups of the Local Cultural Association, choir members of the “Harmonia” Preveza youth choir. The commissioned work presented is “Didimanes”, composed by Dimitra Trypani, based on the homonym novel by Spyros Bogdanos about a true 19th century story on Paxos.

Venue: Old Lakka school

SATURDAY, AUGUST 29th, 8pm

1st CONCERT of the “BENYOUNES” STRING QUARTET

Benyounes: one of the most dynamic, successful and upcoming string quartets of ambitious young musicians presented recently in the UK. Winners of the 1st prize in the Sandor Vegh International String Quartets Competition (Budapest, 2012) and of the 2nd prize in Orlando International String Quartet Competition (2014).

Featuring Jeremy Young at the piano, one of the most versatile and acclaimed UK musicians.

Program

DEBUSSY Violin Sonata in G minor

LISZT Sonetta del Petrarca No 104 for piano

MENDELSSOHN Venetian Gondola Songs Op19 No 6 and Op 30 No 6 for piano

RACHMANINOV Vocalise for cello and piano

SCHUMANN Fantasiestuke for cello and piano

SCHUBERT Quartet in D minor “Death and the Maiden”

Venue: Old Loggos School

MONDAY AUGUST 31st, 8pm

Meet the musicians of the Benyounes quartet and some of their musicians friends in a relaxed evening full of musical surprises.

Free Entry

Venue: Old Loggos School

TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 1st 8pm

2nd BENYOUNES STRING QUARTET CONCERT

Program

HAYDN Quartet in F major Opus 50 No 5 ” The Dream”

DVORAK “American” String Quartet in F major ELGAR Piano Quintet in A minor Opus 84

Venue: Old Loggos School

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3rd 8pm

3rd BENYOUNES CONCERT featuring Jeremy Young (piano)

Program

MOZART Piano Concerto K414 in A major

RAVEL arr. J Young Piano Concerto ii) Adagio

MENDELSSOHN Quartet in F minor Opus 80

Venue: Old Loggos School

Paxos Music Festival 2015 Workshops

Τhe 2015 Festival is happy to announce the following workshops:

1) Interdisciplinary Choral Workshop (23-28/8 2015)

This workshop’s intent is to bring into artistic contact and cooperation through choir and theater disciplines professional and amateur musicians over 18 years of age enriching singing with movement and speech. Participants will be introduced to contemporary choir techniques along with the vast music and cultural traditions of the area.

Participants will work intensively to prepare a performance of the music work of Dimitra Trypani, composer and lecturer at the Department of Music Studies of the Ionian University under the title “Didimanes” (Twin Μothers), a music and theater play for a 5 voices choir, percussion and two narrators.

Play duration: 45 min

Rehearsals Duration: 5-6 hours daily from 23 to 29 August 2015

Choir teachers: Aneljia Stefanova, multiple prize winner with children and teenager’s choirs in Preveza, Lefkas and Ioannina, and Dimitra Trypani.

Staging: Choreographer and dancer Mairy Randou

The workshop results will be presented in the concert of 28 August 2015 in the old school in Lakka, Paxos

Requirements for the participants: Men but mainly women over 18 years of age, who love music and singing and have some professional or amateur level experience (music uni students, music schools students, choir members, singing groups members, teachers, singers, actors etc) with an average musical perception and sense of rhythm and movement. Score reading skills desired but not essential. Please apply at paxosworkshops@gmail.com

Participation fee: The workshop is free of any charge.

2) Traditional Polyphonic Song Workshop – Women’s Phonetic Ensemble “Pleiades” (24-27/8 2015)

Pleiades will be introducing to the participants elements and techniques of traditional polyphonic singing from the areas of Epiros, Ionian Islands and South Italy. The results of the workshop will be presented during the Pleiades concert on the 27th August 2015.

Participants: Greek and English speaking men and women aged from 18. Only up to 15 active participants will be accepted. If more they will be able to follow as observers. Please apply at paxosworkshops@gmail.com

Participation fee: free for locals, 30 euro per person for non locals.

3) Music Workshop for children (23-28/08)

Our annual children’s music workshop refers to children aged 4-13 and it is free.

For more info please contact local producer Faye Lychnou at +30 6944633123 or at fayelychnou@hotmail.com or send a message at our facebook page: facebook http://www.facebook.com/paxosmusicfestival.

Workshops are realized with the kind support of:

THE J. F. COSTOPOULOS FOUNDATION

2015 Festival Supporters

The Hargreaves and Ball Trust, The Thameswharf Charity, The J.F.Costopoulos Foundation, The Mackintosh Foundation, Simpson Travel, Travel a la Carte, Friends of Paxos Nonprofit Organization and anonymous private donors

We would like to offer our Special Thanks to:

The Mayor of Paxos and the Local Municipal Council members, Katerina Koskina, the Board of Directors of Paxos Cultural Association, Parents Associations, Friends of Paxos Non Profit Organization, Elvira Metallinou (Image Corfu), local businesspeople.

All concerts take place at 8pm.

Ticket cost: 15 euro for concerts at 23, 29/08 and at 1, 3/09.

For more info please contact local producer Faye Lychnou at +30 6944633123 or at fayelychnou@hotmail.com or send a message at our facebook page: facebook http://www.facebook.com/paxosmusicfestival.