On the digital platform featuring 130 works, alongside contemporary composers who are still creating, some of the most important Greek composers are also represented. These composers played a decisive role in the course of modern Greek musical creation throughout the previous century. They pioneered the formation of a ‘language’ of a new Hellenism in art music, and were also groundbreaking composers who forged new paths towards the avant-garde.
Manolis Kalomiris was a pioneer in the creation of a national school of music, dominating Greek musical life from the mid-1910s throughout the first half of the 20th century. He simultaneously spearheaded the establishment of musical institutions and associations, holding administrative positions. Kalomiris has always held a prominent place in the Orchestra’s repertoire, and thirteen of his works, from older live recordings, are presented here.
The Symphony of Manliness (Symphony of Valor) and the so-called Palamic Symphony (No. 3), Symphony No. 2 Of the Naive and Good People, as well as the Symphonic Concerto for piano, provide a comprehensive overview of the grand symphonic structures in which the great composer tested his craft. These are presented alongside works where music meets the grand poetry of Dionysios Solomos (The Destruction of Psara and The Free Besieged).
Nikos Skalkottas, one of the most significant composers of the Greek avant-garde, could not be absent from this panorama of Greek music. Deeply influenced by Arnold Schoenberg and the twelve-tone movement, he did not follow it dogmatically but developed a personal and absolutely original variation of it. For financial reasons, Skalkottas worked as a violinist in the Athens State Orchestra and later in the orchestras of the Greek National Opera and Hellenic Radio. During the same period, as a creative counterbalance, he composed intensely. From 1935 to 1945, he wrote over a hundred works.
In the thirteen works by Skalkottas available here, listeners can gain a comprehensive understanding of the great composer’s versatility. Although he lived only 45 years, he left behind an enormous legacy, not only in the field of musical avant-garde but also in the use of traditional Greek elements in new forms, such as in the 36 Greek Dances for orchestra.
Two of the most emblematic figures of post-war creation, Iannis Xenakis and Jani Christou, also belong to the Greek musical avant-garde. These composers dramatically expanded the boundaries of musical thought and connected the Greek element with the most innovative currents of the European avant-garde.
Iannis Xenakis, with international renown and profound influence on 20th-century music, was a unique creator who connected composition with mathematics, physics, architecture, and philosophy. His music does not develop through traditional melodic and harmonic forms, but through sound masses, densities, and complex structures that transform the orchestra into a living sonic field.
The platform presents two of his most important works: Aeschylus’ Suppliants, inspired by the tragedy of Aeschylus, where ancient Greek dramaturgy meets an explosive, ritualistic sound language, and Metastaseis, a landmark work of post-war musical avant-garde. In Metastaseis, Xenakis introduces an entirely new concept of musical time and sound movement, utilizing architectural and mathematical principles to shape the orchestral material. The work is now considered one of the most influential symphonic works of the 20th century and marks the entry of Greek musical creation into the core of the international avant-garde.
Equally distinctive was the case of Jani Christou, a composer with a deep philosophical and existential quest, whose work moved beyond the narrow confines of musical composition, incorporating elements of theatre, ritual, and psychological experience. His music is characterized by intense drama, symbolism, and a continuous search for the boundaries between sound, silence, and human presence.
The work Phoenix Music is a characteristic example of this unique creative identity. Through an atmosphere of mystagogy and continuous transformation, Christou constructs a sonic world that alludes to the concept of rebirth and transcendence, ideas that deeply occupied his entire artistic journey. His music does not merely aim for aesthetic emotion but functions as an experience of internal participation, highlighting Christou as one of the most idiosyncratic and pioneering figures in modern Greek musical creation.
Visit the new digital platform of the Athens State Orchestra at https://hub.koa.gr/
The project was implemented within the framework of the “Development of Digital Products and Services” program of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan “Greece 2.0” with funding from the European Union-NextGenerationEU.
