MUSICAL PORTRAITS
Co-production:
Megaron – The Athens Concert Hall
Athens Philharmonia Orchestra
A tribute to Cretan-descended, top American composer George Tsontakis, born in Astoria and living in New York State, who will be with us tonight in the Dimitri Mitropoulos Hall. Twice nominated for a Grammy Award, winner of the Grawemeyer Αward for his Violin Concerto No. 2, and recipient of the Charles Ives Living presented by the American Academy of Arts and Letters.
Tonight’s programme features two Greek premieres: Unforgettable, a concerto for two violins, and Clair de lune, for orchestra. The concert opens and closes with ballet music by Skalkottas, and also includes his orchestrations of two harpsichord sonatas by baroque composer Domenico Scarlatti.
– Nikos Skalkottas: The Gnomes [Ta pagana], ballet
– George Tsontakis: Unforgettable, concerto for two violins and orchestra
– Domenico Scarlatti: Two sonatas orchestrated by Nikos Skalkottas
– George Tsontakis: Clair de lune, for orchestra
– Nikos Skalkottas: 3 extracts from the folk ballet ‘The Sea’, transcribed for chamber orchestra by the composer
Apollon Grammatikopoulos violin
Panagiotis Tziotis violin
The Athens Philharmonia Orchestra
Conducted by Nikos Tsouchlos