The Collegium Musicum Athenarum is an active chamber orchestra founded in June 2023 and has already distinguished itself for the quality of its musical offerings. On Monday, December 22, 2025, it presents works by Nikos Skalkottas, Iosif Papadatos, and Astor Piazzolla. On the occasion of the concert, the ensemble’s founder and conductor, Nikos Athinaios, talks to us about the rationale behind the selection of works and explains why this evening is worth attending.
What motivated you to create the Collegium Musicum?
The invitation from the Artistic Director of the Kythnos Festival, Ms. Maria Efstratiadi, to jointly perform Johann Sebastian Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos during the 2023 Festival led me to consider forming an ensemble modeled after Bach’s time in Leipzig: an orchestra based on strings, consisting of established experienced musicians, budding young professionals at the beginning of their careers, or even very advanced students. The success of the endeavor led us to continue the effort, based on a permanent string orchestra formation. The support of the Athens Conservatoire, where the orchestra is an ensemble in residence, has been and continues to be invaluable.
So the term refers to a Central European tradition.
From the 16th to the 18th century, and especially in Germany, the term “Collegium Musicum” was often used for a private or student association of music lovers who initially gathered either to sing together or later (17th and 18th century) to play instrumental music. Professional musicians often participated, and over time, purely professional orchestras were formed that gained great fame, such as the aforementioned Collegium Musicum of Leipzig, founded in 1701 by Georg Philipp Telemann and later taken over by J. S. Bach. The term ceased to be used in the 19th century but reappeared from the early 20th. Well-known contemporary ensembles with this name exist, among others, in Basel, Zurich, Salzburg, Leipzig, but not exclusively in European cities, but also in those of other continents, such as the Bach Collegium in Tokyo, Japan.
Now, however, through the ‘Musical Dialogues’ program, you are bringing together works of different trends and eras.
The Collegium Musicum Athenarum may have started its ‘career’ with Bach’s Baroque music, but it later turned to classical, romantic, and contemporary repertoire. Of particular importance for the ensemble is the performance of works by Greek composers and the promotion of Greek art music. We recently appeared at the Athens Concert Hall with a purely Greek program consisting of works by composers Dimitris Dragatakis, Yannis Andreou Papaioannou, Theodoros Antoniou, and Iosif Papadatos – a program that generated significant interest and corresponding public attendance.
What is the concept behind the program for the upcoming evening?
We believe that Greek art music, although it developed much later in relation to Western European music, has significant works of great value to offer that can easily stand alongside works of the international repertoire. This is how the idea was born to open a ‘dialogue’ with our programs between Greek and international repertoire in the 20th and 21st centuries, with the intention of supporting the truth of this statement.
Of particular interest, of course, is the central work of the evening, Iosif Papadatos’s Symphony No. 2. Is this a premiere?
No, the work was written in 1995 and has been performed successfully several times. It lasts approximately 25 minutes, is written in an expanded tonality style, and sets a very beautiful text by Giorgos Koropoulis to music.
What are the characteristics of the work that fascinate you as a performer?
The introspection, expressive simplicity, and transparency of the writing in the first two movements, and the dramatic outbursts and contrasts in the third, as well as the way the spoken word is supported and interpreted by the composer.
Here I would like to add that Iosif Papadatos is an excellent composer, having served two consecutive terms as president of the Union of Greek Composers. At the same time, he is a very measured person and a personal friend. His works have been and are repeatedly performed in Greece and abroad.
Do you believe these will also appeal to the wider public?
I remember that when I first heard recorded excerpts of the 2nd Symphony at an event at the Athens Conservatoire, I had such a strong impression that I immediately asked the composer to give me the score to study. Although as a musician I may not have the same criteria as the general public, I believe that any truly interested listener, if they focus on the text and let the music act on its own, will find the work particularly appealing.
The presence of a text set to music, especially by the distinguished poet and radio producer Giorgos Koropoulis, is therefore of particular importance.
This question is essentially answered by the response to the previous question! The text itself is extremely expressive; however, the combination of this poetry and this music is so penetrating in both directions that a powerful impression emerges through it.
One could easily imagine Giorgos Koropoulis writing a text for Astor Piazzolla’s work – but here the narrator will be the violin.
The first ‘teacher’ of the Four Seasons is undoubtedly Antonio Vivaldi. His work, based on four sonnets (probably written by himself), is purely (unsurpassed!) programmatic music, even with descriptive notes from the poem texts between the lines of the score. The solo violin and orchestra ‘describe’ phenomena and emotions. Piazzolla’s work – which often refers with small allusions to the first teacher – does not describe as much as it carries away with often orgiastic rhythmic vitality and captivates with intense emotionalism. And the undisputed protagonist, with the solo cello and the orchestra in general as worthy partners, is the soloist with his violin. No words are needed here.
The soloist in this case will be Franz Shestani. I would ask you to conclude with a few words about the evening’s great soloists…
I have collaborated repeatedly and for many years with both Aggeliki Kathariou and Franz Shestani, and I hold them in immense esteem. You will certainly enjoy them on Monday. Regarding each of their careers, I can only refer you to their biographies in the program; they are truly rich. For me, they are excellent musicians, friends, and invaluable collaborators.
…and about the timeless (in terms of repertoire) charm of an ensemble exclusively of strings.
Strings are undoubtedly the soul of a large symphony orchestra and a group with unlimited technical and sonic possibilities. An independent string ensemble, however, is also an extremely flexible formation, suitable for smaller venues, offering the composer many expressive possibilities and the listener a complete auditory delight. The repertoire is endless, and great works have been written – and are being written – both in the past and today, both internationally and in Greece.
