Yiorgos Kountouris - Music from the Theatres of Cyprus 2

 

                                   Online Streaming

Music from the Theatres of Cyprus 2

Saturday 20/3/21, 19:00  

CYSO Channel – Youtube

 Our concert “Music from the Theatre of Cyprus 2”, performed live at Larnaka Municipal Theatre, will be streamed online for our wider audience all over Cyprus and beyond. Tune into our YouTube channel and enjoy it from the comfort of your homes!

 The CySO is delighted to be joined in this concert by two highly talented Cypriot artists, tubist Andreas Theocharous and the distinguished conductor Yiorgos Kountouris. This beautiful programme consists of two contemporary works and a classical symphony.

 The opening piece is the music for ballet “Leda and the swan” by Constantin Papageorgio – member of the CySO and composer. Here, the composer «depicts» the famous myth using impressionistic expressive means to create the imagery and movement.

 Next, we present the Concerto for tuba by the Norwegian composer Arild Plau, written in 1990. It is a compelling work, whose middle movement is a tribute to the composer’s wife who had passed away. The concerto was recorded in 2003 by tuba soloist and Plau’s compatriot, Øystein Baadsvik. Ever since it has become a popular concert for tuba soloists and it features regularly in concerts and competitions.

 The programme concludes with Joseph Haydn’s popular “Clock” Symphony no. 101 in D major, a work pervaded by heartfelt joy. The characteristic "ticking" rhythm that runs throughout its 2^nd movement is responsible for its nickname “the Clock”.

 Constantin Papageorgio: Leda and the Swan

Arild Plau: Concerto for tuba and strings

Joseph Haydn: Symphony no. 101 in D major

 Soloist: Andreas Theocharous (tuba)

Conductor: Yiorgos Kountouris

YIORGOS KOUNTOURIS, Artistic Director & Conductor of the Cyprus Youth Symphony Orchestra

Yiorgos Kountouris is the Artistic Director of the Cyprus Youth Symphony Orchestra and its Academy. He graduated from the St. Petersburg State Conservatory in 2006, where he studied Symphonic and Operatic Conducting with Prof. Alexander Alexeev and Violin with Prof. Antonina Kazarena. In the same year, Mr. Kountouris was appointed at the University of California, Los Angeles as the assistant conductor of the UCLA Philharmonia and UCLA Symphony Orchestras. 

 He has conducted numerous orchestras in Europe, the U.S.A. and Russia. Some indicative collaborations of the maestro include the St. Petersburg Philharmonic, the Vienna Chamber Orchestra, the Hermitage State Chamber Orchestra, the Athens Camerata as well as the Lege Artis and Wiener Singakademie choirs. Yiorgos Kountouris performed in some of the world’s most historic music halls such as the Wiener Konzerthaus and Musikverein, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Hall, the Athens Megaron and the Royce Hall in Los Angeles.

He had his Cyprus début in June 2008 with the Cyprus Symphony Orchestra and ever since he maintains a frequent collaboration with the orchestra. Works under his baton have been released by ECM and Zeus. 

Yiorgos Kountouris holds a PhD in Musicology and an Aspirantura Graduate Degree in Symphonic and Operatic Conducting.

ANDREAS THEOCHAROUS

 Andreas Theocharous is a tuba player born and raised in Limassol. He started his music studies at the Music Lyceum of Limassol and the music workshop of the Cyprus Youth Symphony Orchestra with Andreas Giannakouras while also being a member of Cyprus Youth Symphony Orchestra.

 Thereafter, he continued his undergraduate studies at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in the Tuba class of Andy Duncan, from where he graduated with 1^st degree honours. Currently, he continues his studies there with a postgraduate degree in music performance.

 As a soloist he has performed with the Edinburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra and the Cyprus Youth Symphony Orchestra. In 2020, he won the Governor’s recital competition for brass in the UK. As a freelance musician he has worked with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Scottish Ballet, Scottish Opera, and Cyprus Symphony Orchestra as well as in various other music productions.

In Cyprus, he has collaborated with many artists such as Vasilis Lekkas, Haris Alexiou, Dionisis Savvopoulos, Alkistis Protopsalti, Pandelis Thalassinos and Iro Saia while he appeared in concerts in the UK, Spain, Italy, Malta, Lebanon, Greece and Cyprus.

CYPRUS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

https://www.cyso.org.cy/