Crossing cultural and musical bridges at the Athens Concert Hall
Film screenings of musicals, accompanied by live music; concerts by well-known Greek and foreign composers; as well as an evening devoted to Spanish music are some of the highlights at the Athens Concert Hall’s popular «Bridges» series this season. The cycle was launched last week with «The Treasure,» a classic film by German director Georg Wilhelm Pabst, one of the prime architects of modern cinema. «Bridges to many cultures, bridges to other artistic forms, bridges to young people as well as to a new type of audience, one that approaches music more spherically,» was how the event’s artistic director, Dimitris Marangopoulos, described the series at a press conference recently. He also said that particular emphasis would be placed this season on «Greek music, particularly Greek song, as well as on film and the world of guitar.» Events on the agenda include Pabst’s film «White Hell of Pitz Palu» on November 30; a tribute to Cretan music directed by Memi Spyratou and artistically directed by Labros Liavas, a musicologist, on December 10 and 11; a concert by Michalis Grigoriou on December 15; a musical inspired by Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s «Little Prince» between December 22-23 and 27-30; as well as a film projection featuring excerpts of classic musical cartoons between December 25 and 30 as the series’s final event in 2002. The new year will open with a concert by Britten Sinfonia on January 27; local composer Nikos Kypourgos will present the musical «Kypotheatro» on February 18-19, and a series of 10 short films on dance by Anna Teresa de Keersmaeker, an acclaimed choreographer, will follow on March 23. The Athens Camerata Orchestra has been booked for two concerts on February 8 and March 8, while this year’s fourth Guitar Festival will include some worthy events, such as an evening of Spanish music with the Athens State Orchestra, a performance by Brazilian vocalist Badi Assad and a jazz concert by Bobby McFerrin. The venue will also continue its «Sunday Mornings at the Athens Concert Hall» series with concerts by Greek and foreign acts.
