Composers

Albanian conductor Kostika Collaku leads the Contradition Ensemble choir in a recital of both a capella and cantata works by Byrd, Ramsey, Allegri, Purcell, Bach, Mozart, Rheinberger, Rachmaninoff, Szymanowski, Faure, Poulenc, Schnittke and Part in Thessaloniki on Thursday, April 18. The performance will take place at the 15th century Alaca Imaret Mosque, starting at 9 p.m.

Award-winning Polish pianist Anna Miernik, hailed as one of the country's greatest young talents right now, has been invited to perform at the Thessaloniki Concert Hall's tribute to Frederic Chopin on the occasion of the 170th anniversary of the French composer's death. Apart from Chopin pieces, the program also includes a selection of works by Polish composers he inspired.

The Athens Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Brian Kay, with Sarah Power (soprano), William Wallace (tenor) and Frederick Long (bass-baritone), perform Joseph Haydn's iconic oratorio "The Creation" 220 years after its first public performance at Vienna's old Burgtheater, at the Athens Concert Hall on Saturday, April 6.

Acclaimed Albanian cellist Renato Ripo and award-wining Russian pianist Philipp Kopachevsky join forces at the Athens Concert Hall on Wednesday, April 3, for a tribute to the great Russian romantic, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, with a program that includes extracts from "The Nutcracker" in a unique transcription for solo piano by renowned contemporary pianist and conductor Mikhail Pletnev.

I first visited Skopje in 1997 to attend a peace concert by Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis. It had all the elements to become a charming city with a strong modernist identity, expanding on the reconstruction that was carried out with the help of Greek architect Constantinos Doxiadis after the devastating earthquake in 1963.

The Ottoman poet Fuzuli's "Water Eulogy" will be performed as an oratorio on March 19 at the Cemal Reşit Rey (CRR) Concert Hall.

Renowned for flamenco compositions and performances influenced by Claude Debussy and modern jazz, David Pena Dorantes, a Romani pianist and composer from Andalusia, will perform at the Parnassos Literary Society on Monday, March 18. The performance starts at 8 p.m.

Greek conductor Miltos Logiadis leads the Wiener Concert-Verein Orchestra, an ensemble formed in 1987 by members of the Vienna Symphony, in a program at the Athens Concert Hall centered on two great Viennese classics, Haydn's dramatic Symphony No 39, known as "Tempesta di Mare," and Mozart's all-time favorite Symphony No 40.

Christos Zerbinos (accordion) and Iakovos Kolanian (guitar) join the ERT Contemporary Music Orchestra on stage at the Athens Concert Hall on Thursday, March 14, in a program that showcases the beauty and capabilities of the soloists' respective instruments.

"Zorba the Greek" composer Mikis Theodorakis has undergone surgery in Athens to have a pacemaker installed.
A hospital statement says Theodorakis, who is 94, had the operation Friday and is recuperating in his room.
Theodorakis won international acclaim and inspired millions at home with his prolific work and political defiance during Greece's 1967-74 military dictatorship.