Approximately one hundred years have passed since the birth of Vasilis Tsitsanis (Trikala – 18 January 1915) and almost 30 years have passed since his death (London 18 January 1984), a cycle of concerts is to begin – dedicated to the great Greek creator and composer.
Vasilis Tsitsanis was one of the greatest Greek popular composers, songwriters and singers of the 20th century. He was one of the most significant personas of the rebetiko and the popular song.
In the concert cycle ‘Cherchez la femme: Women sing Tsitsanis’ the Orchestra of the Cultural Music Society ‘Vasilis Tsitsanis’ is to participate, performing the works of this beloved composer. The Orchestra consists of professional musicians and is renowned both in Greeceand abroad for its contribution to the continuation and promotion of the rebetiko and popular music. The distinctive element of the orchestra is that it deals exclusively with the first recordings of Vasilis Tsitsanis, reorchestrated for their orchestral ensemble. The Orchestra is affiliated to the activities (concerts, lectures, seminars, conferences) of the non-profit the Cultural Music Society ‘Vasilis Tsitsanis’ (http://www.vasilis-tsitsanis.gr) established by honorary members Kostas and Victoria Tsitsanis, whose consent is mandatory for any sort of activity.
Thus, this inaugural event too, in Thessaloniki Monday 9 September at the Lazariston Monastery, bears the valuable assistance of the composer’s family, as well as the artistic director’s and founder of the Society, the musician and musicologist Nikos Ordoulidis (first PhD on the subject of Tsitsanis’s corpus – University of Leeds).
A performance enriched by rare audiovisual material, which has been granted by Tsitsanis’s family, while exceptional female voices will fill the Lazariston Monastery with the most well known and beloved popular and rebetiko songs of Vasilis Tsitsanis.
Songs of pain, weeping, lamenting, songs which are bound with the voices of Soritia Belou, Marika Ninou, Kati Grey, Polly Panou, Haroula Lambraki, Viki Mosholiou are
performed by ‘la femme’ Melina Aslanidou, Fotini Velesiotou and Pitsa Papadopoulou.
The cycle of concerts, starts in Thessaloniki, the city in which he lived during the years of the German occupation but also after the war, where he recorded many of our favourite songs: ‘Ungrateful’ ‘Aharisti’, ‘The surroundings’ ‘Ta Perix’, ‘Magical Nights’ ‘Nyhtes magikes’, ‘Beggar for love’ ‘Zitianos tis agapis’, ‘Swell gal’ ‘Dermbederissa’ and of course ‘Cloudy Sunday’ ‘Sinefiasmeni Kyriaki’ and ‘Garden manor’ ‘Baxe tsifliki’.
On Monday 9 September ‘Let’s go for a stroll, so I can play you some fine baglamas, Marigo, it will drive you crazy, when you listen to Tsitsanis’ ‘Pame tsarka, na sou pexo fino baglama, Marigo, tha se trelani, n’akousis ton Tsitsani’, by the WOMEN!
INFO
Lazariston Monastery,21 Kolokotroni Street, Stavroupoli.
Start time: 21:00
Ticket prices:
-General admission: presale €10, at box office €12
-VIP (seats in front of the stage): presale €20, at box office €23
Points of presale: ΙΑΝΟΣ, PUBLIC, Lazariston Monastery
www.ticketservices, www.i-ticket.gr, ΕΝΤΕΧΝΟΝ, SAROTHRON (ΣΑΡΩΘΡΟΝ)
Information: 2310 589200, 6949950530
