Classical music in Ermoupolis
The 4th Cyclades International Music Festival starts today. Held at the Apollo Theater, situated in the heart of Ermoupolis on Syros, the event will run to August 30. Violinist Yiannos Margaziotis, who has been the festival’s artistic director since its start, talked to Kathimerini about the process so far, as well as plans for the future. «There are many important classical music festivals that take place abroad and I can say that many of the foreign artists performing in them are also participating in our festival. We are interested in making our festival better known abroad and promoting ‘music tourism.’ We want to attract people from other countries, who will want to come to Syros in the summer on the occasion of the festival. We need a coordinated effort to do that.» Next year, the festival will celebrate its fifth anniversary and Margaziotis is planning to make it a festive event. «I am in no position to mention any names yet, but it is certain that, despite the financial difficulties, next year’s festival will be a commemorative one. «Fortunately, we have had the support of the Lavrentiadis Group for three years as well as that of Kyriakos Tsigiroglou’s Kintec company, which has taken care of our basic needs.» Margaziotis pointed out that the Cyclades International Music Festival is purely about classical music. «I greatly insisted on that. People trust us because they know what to expect. We do not present music unrelated to classical.» Pianist Yiannis Vakarelis will make tonight’s start, in a program of works by Schubert and Brahms, where he will be joined by violinists Mihaela Martin and Margaziotis, viola player Sune Ranmo, cellist Frans Helmerson and double-bassist Vassilis Papavassileiou. Tomorrow, the New Hellenic Quartet (violinists Giorgos Demertzis and Dimitris Handrakis, viola player Angela Yiannaki and pianist Angelos Liakakis) will perform compositions by Beethoven, Mikis Theodorakis and Shosta-kovich. On Friday, soprano Elena Kelessidi and tenor Antonis Koroneos will perform excerpts of works by Verdi, Donizetti, Puccini and others accompanied by pianist Anahit Ter-Tatsatyan, while Saturday’s program will feature works by Brahms and Beethoven with Margaziotis, soprano Lenia Zafeiropoulou, pianist Katrine Gislinge and others. Margaziotis, cellist Nikolas Ka-vakos and pianist Anni Totsiou will play melodies by Beethoven and Brahms on August 27 and will be followed by violinist Leonidas Kavakos, viola player Diemut Poppen, cellist Patrick Demenga and pianist Enrico Pace in a program of works by Mendelssohn-Bartholdy and Brahms on August 28. The Athens Concert Hall’s Camerata Orchestra, under the baton of Sergiu Nastasa, will play works by Mozart, Rossini, Nikos Skalkottas and others joined by double-bassists Vassilis Papavassileiou and Michael Wolf on August 29. The festival will end the following day, with flautist Nikos Nikopoulos and pianist Lito Thomou performing compositions by Schubert, Albert Franz Doppler, Francois Borne and Carl Reinecke. www.festivalcyclades.gr
