From the Omega of Time to the Alpha of Eternity

Three principal players from the three state orchestras of Greece (the Orchestra of the Greek National Opera, the Athens State Orchestra and the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra) perform three of the masterful three-part Preludes and Fugues included in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's catalogue of works. The first two fugues are transcriptions from Johann Sebastian Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier and the last one derives from Wilhelm Friedemann (eldest son of Johann Sebastian) Bach's work Eight Fugues. The slow introductions preceding each of the fugues are attributed to Mozart. Between the three musical works, actress Nektaria Panagiotopoulou will recite liturgical as well as short contemplative texts written by Christian Saints who celebrated, glorified and, most importantly, experienced this supreme religious manifestation, the Resurrection of Christ.

Programme

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) (attr.)
Preludes and Fugues [Sechs langsame Sätze und dreistimmige Fugen], KV 404a
No. 1 in D minor
— Adagio
— Fugue (trans. from: J. S. Bach, The Well-Tempered Clavier [Das wohltemperierte Klavier], Book I [1722], Fugue in E-flat minor, BWV 853)

St Paul
1 Corinthians, 15:3-55
"In the smallest hymn, the greatest inspiration"

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (attr.)
Preludes and Fugues
No. 2 in G minor
— Adagio
— Fugue (trans. from: J. S. Bach, The Well-Tempered Clavier [Das wohltemperierte Klavier], Book II [ca 1740], Fugue in F minor, BWV 883)

St Porphyrios of Kafsokalyvia
"The undisputed victor in the Gigantomachy of life and death"

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (attr.)
Preludes and Fugues
No. 6 in F minor
— Adagio
— Fugue (trans. from: W. F. Bach, Eight Fugues [ca 1774-78], Fugue No. 8 in F minor, BR-WFB Α 88, Fk 31)

BRIEF BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES
Michael Kolokotronis
Studied violin at Athens Conservatoire with Pantelis Despotidis. During his studies he won the silver medal at the competition Filonos New Talents in Piraeus. He has performed as a soloist with the Greek Youth Symphony Orchestra, Larissa Symphony Orchestra, GNO Chamber Orchestra as well as with various chamber ensembles. He graduated from the Department of Music Studies of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and he is second Principal of the GNO Orchestra.

Enkela Kokolani
Enkela Kokolani started her violin lessons in the Music School of Gjirokastra, before continuing with viola lessons. She graduated from the Academy of Arts in Tirana, from Gjergj Pekmezi’s and Arben Llozi’s classes. She was a member of the Mediterranean Youth Orchestra, based in Aix-en Provence (France), during the summer seasons of 1995-6. From September 1996 she was an extra musician of Athens State Orchestra before becoming a permanent member in 2001. She has also collaborated with other orchestras in Greece such as the GNO Orchestra and the Athens Municipality Symphony Orchestra, where she was also a principal viola player. She has participated in various masterclasses under the tutelage of professors Bruno Pasquer, Rainer Moog and Grigori Zhislin. She has appeared as a soloist with the Athens State Orchestra and Intrarti Orchestra. She participated in various groups of chamber music in Greece, Austria and Germany, such as the Ensemble Modern, Kyklos Ensemble, Intermezzo String Quartet etc. She participated in music festivals in Syros and Paxi (Greece) and Nyiregyhaza (Hungary). In 2013, she completed her postgraduate studies at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz (Austria), in the class of Professor Christian Euler, obtaining her Master of Arts. Since 2016 she has been the second Principal viola at the Athens State Orchestra.

Myrto Talakoudi
Received her violoncello diploma under the tutelage of Manolis Kazabakas and began her studies, with a scholarship from Megaron The Athens Concert Hall, at the Freiburg University of Music in Germany, in the class of Christoph Henkel and Adriana Contino. She continued her post-graduate studies at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University (USA), in the class of the renowned professor and soloist Janos Starker, with a scholarship from the State Scholarships Foundation and the Eva Heinitz Cello Scholarship. She holds a master’s degree with specialisation in chamber music from the Department of Music Studies of the University of Macedonia, where she studied with Professor Dimitris Patras. She was a member of the European Union Youth Orchestra, Camerata – Armonia Atenea, has been the Principal cellist of the GNO Orchestra and worked for many years at the Theater Chemnitz (Robert-Schumann-Philharmonie) and the Neue Philharmonie Westfalen in Germany. She holds a permanent position at the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra.