The GNO presents recordings of rare works by Greek composers | 2nd Cycle

Riadis, Mitropoulos, Carrer: Songs for Voice and Orchestra
Spyridon Samaras: Songs for Voice and Piano
Manolis: The First Songs

The Greek National Opera presents the 2nd cycle of digital recordings of selected works by Greek composers, continuing its initiative to bring Greek musical heritage to the fore. The new cycle includes the albums Songs for Voice and Orchestra, featuring works by Riadis, Mitropoulos, and Carrer; Songs for Voice and Piano, with works by Spyridon Samaras; and Manolis Kalomiris’ First Songs. The new releases are available on all digital platforms and on the GNO’s YouTube channel. Following the successful release of the first cycle, which featured Emilios Riadis’ opera Galatea and Spyridon Samaras’ operettas War in War, The Princess of Sasson, and The Cretan Girl, the new cycle aims to highlight major chapters of the Greek operatic and vocal repertoire. This work falls under the Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0,” funded by the European Union – NextGeneration EU.

With this new album edition, the Greek National Opera reaffirms its commitment to bringing Greek operatic works from the early 20th century to the fore, works that, despite their artistic and historical significance, have remained outside active circulation for decades. Through scientific research, the restoration of manuscript sources, and the critical processing of the musical material, this initiative aims not only to salvage but also to reintroduce these works to contemporary audiences.

These recordings shed light upon various aspects of Greek musical creation during a period of stark aesthetic and ideological transformations: from its relationship with major European movements to the development of a Greek bourgeois music theatre. This edition seeks to contribute to a reappraisal of this period by highlighting the compositional diversity and theatrical dynamics of pieces that deserve a new place in the historical and artistic dialogue.

THE LIST OF WORKS
Standing out in the list are works by prominent composers, including Emilios Riadis, Spyridon Samaras, Paolo Carrer, Manolis Kalomiris, Michalis Poniridis, Dimitri Mitropoulos, Georgios Lambelet, Dionysios Lavrangas, and Vasilis Kalafatis. The recordings were made in collaboration with the Thessaloniki State Orchestra, the Chorus of Opera Plovdiv, the National Symphony Orchestra, and the ERT Choir, as well as with numerous distinguished musicians and performers. The Project Manager and curator of this cycle of recordings is the director and Associate Professor in the Department of Performing and Digital Arts at the University of Peloponnese, Alexandros Efklidis.

The series includes two world-first recordings: the opera Galatea by Emilios Riadis, performed by the Thessaloniki State Orchestra and Opera Plovdiv's Chorus, and the operetta War in War by Spyridon Samaras, performed by the National Symphony Orchestra and the ERT Chorus. Moreover, the collection features the operettas The Princess of Sasson and The Cretan Girl by Samaras; songs for voice and orchestra by Riadis, Mitropoulos, and Carrer; the complete recording of Samaras’ piano works, as well as his works for voice and piano; Manolis Kalomiris’ first songs; Greek chamber music works by Carrer, Poniridis, and Kalomiris; and Greek string quartet pieces by Lambelet, Lavrangas, and Kalafatis. The entire set of recordings offers a rich and diverse panorama of sophisticated Greek music, showcasing its breadth, timelessness, and artistic value. The Hellenic Music Centre, founded by musicologists Yannis Samprovalakis and Yannis Tselikas, has been a valuable collaborator throughout the Project's implementation.

RELEASE DATES
The digital recordings series will be made available to the public in three cycles. The first cycle includes operas and operettas; the second, songs; and the third, orchestral works. More specifically, the release dates are as follows:

1st CYCLE | AVAILABLE ON ALL DIGITAL PLATFORMS AND ON THE GNO’S YOUTUBE CHANNEL

Spyridon Samaras: War in War
Available on all digital platforms and on the GNO's YouTube channel

Spyridon Samaras: The Princess of Sasson
Available on all digital platforms and on the GNO's YouTube channel

Spyridon Samaras: The Cretan Girl
Available on all digital platforms and on the GNO's YouTube channel

Emilios Riadis: Galatea
Available on the GNO's YouTube channel

2nd CYCLE | RELEASE DATE: 8 MAY 2026

Riadis, Mitropoulos, Carrer: Songs for Voice and Orchestra
Available on all digital platforms and on the GNO's YouTube channel

Spyridon Samaras: Songs for Voice and Piano
Available on all digital platforms and on the GNO's YouTube channel

Manolis Kalorimis: The First Songs
Available on all digital platforms and on the GNO's YouTube channel

3rd CYCLE | RELEASE DATE: 29 MAY 2026

Carrer, Poniridis, Kalomiris: Greek chamber music works
Spyridon Samaras: Piano works
Lambelet, Lavrangas, Kalafatis: Greek string quartets

The recordings will be available on all digital platforms, as well as on the Greek National Opera’s YouTube channel, offering audiences the chance to discover and enjoy rare works released in digital form for the first time.

Project manager, cycle curator: Alexandros Efklidis
Musical content supervision, cycle supervision: Hellenic Music Centre
Production planning and execution: Angelos Mastrantonis, Marianna Tassy
Project coordinators: Panina Karydi, Giorgos Papadakis

Greek National Opera Recordings Series
Selected Works by Greek Composers

SECOND CYCLE | RELEASE DATE: 8 MAY 2026

Songs for Voice and Orchestra: Emile Riadis — Jasmins et Minarets, Quatre Chansons • Dimitri Mitropoulos — Lament of Electra, Kassiani • Pavlos Karrer — The Old Beggar
Available on the GNO's YouTube channel

This recording brings to light a rare and highly valuable chapter of sophisticated Greek music: songs for voice and orchestra by Emilios Riadis, Dimitris Mitropoulos, and Paolo Carrer. These compositions illuminate various aesthetic directions and historical periods, from the late Romantic era to early modernism, highlighting the wealth and diversity of Greek musical creation. 

Riadis’ songs, featuring exoticism, fine arrangement, and atmospheric lyricism, reflect the allure of Thessaloniki and the East. Mitropoulos is represented by two works of high dramatic intensity, The Lament of Electra and Kassiani, in which the expressive power of speech meets daring and penetrating musical writing. The grand dramatic aria for baritone, The Old Beggar by Carrer, recalls 19th-century opera with a strong dramatic pulse.

Aphrodite Patoulidou, soprano
Myrtò Papatanasiu, soprano
Mary-Ellen Nesi, mezzo-soprano
Dionysios Sourbis, baritone

Thessaloniki State Orchestra
Conductor: Kornilios Michailidis

Evelina Chavale, soloist

Musical production director, digital editing: Antonis Sousamoglou

Music score editing: Yannis Samprovalakis (Mitropoulos), Yannis Tselikas (Riadis: Jasmines et minarets, Carrer), Hellenic Music Centre • sound engineering, sound editing, mastering MD: Alexandros Raidis • Tonmeisterine: Sofia Tamvakopoulou • The recording was carried out in collaboration with the Thessaloniki State Orchestra • Place of recording: Ceremonial Hall of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki  • Recording dates: 2-6 June 2025

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Spyridon Samaras
Songs for Voice and Piano
Available on the GNO's YouTube channel

This is the complete recording of all of the composer’s independent songs for voice and piano, with lyrics in Greek, French, and Italian. These pieces highlight Samaras’ cosmopolitan character and his unique contribution to Greek operatic singing. Samaras’ songs for voice and piano are among the most characteristic and enchanting of his works, illuminating a lesser-known yet highly important aspect of his creative output. Although this repertoire was widely disseminated among early 20th-century music audiences, it remained fragmentarily accessible for many years due to the limited availability of trustworthy editions.  

This recording brings together all of the composer’s independent songs for one voice and piano (except for the hymns and marches), works written at different periods and under various circumstances throughout his life. Their restoration and presentation were based on the study and comparison of earlier editions and archival sources, allowing for a more complete picture of this specific repertoire.  These songs blend elements of the French mélodie, the German Lied, and Italian operatic singing, with an emphasis on melodious immediacy, an equal relationship between voice and piano, and the purity of musical expression.  

Yannis Christopoulos, tenor
Tassis Christoyannis, baritone
imitri Platanias, baritone
Sofia Tamvakopoulou, piano

Recording: Greek National Opera, SNFCC • Head of Sound Department: Giorgos Rekoutis • Sound recording: Thanos Zaboukas, Minoas Koutentakis • Sound editing, sound mixing: Thanos Zaboukas • Mastering: Thanos Zaboukas, Giorgos Rekoutis

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Manolis Kalomiris
The First Songs
Available on the GNO's YouTube channel

The album presents Manolis Kalomiris’ early songs, composed at the outset of his artistic trajectory. These pieces capture the formation of his personal musical idiom and herald aesthetic and expressive trends that would later develop within the Greek National Music School. Through a variety of libretti and expressive characters, these songs highlight the sensitivity, lyricism, and intense dramatic tone of the composer’s early period. 

Fani Antontelou, soprano
Julia Souglakou, soprano
Yannis Christopoulos, tenor
Dionysios Sourbis, baritone
Petros Magoulas, bass
Nicolas Vassiliou, piano

Musical content supervision: Yannis Tselikas, Hellenic Music Centre • Recording: Greek National Opera, SNFCC • Sound engineering, Sound mix, mastering MD: Kostas Bokos – Studio 19 • Editing: Christos Sakellaridis • Tonmeister: Yannis Samprovalakis

As part of the Work “Sub 6.6 Events of the Greek National Opera for showcasing modern Greek culture, with code ΟΠΣ ΤΑ 5180526. This work falls under the Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0,” funded by the European Union's NextGenerationEU.