Rafaela Kontou, winner of the Kalogeropouleio Foundation’s “We Hear the Youth” competition, returns this Saturday (November 29, 2025) to Corinth for the final concert of the 5th Musikaloy Festival. The program for the evening features Michael Webster’s Carmen Rhapsody for flute, clarinet, and piano, based on themes from Georges Bizet’s opera of the same name, which the award-winning musician will perform with distinguished clarinetist Spyros Mourikis and pianist Eleni Nikolaidis.
Kalogeropouleio Foundation, Aratou 74, Corinth
Saturday, November 29, 2025, 7:00 PM
Free admission
https://www.youtube.com/@rafailiakontou/videos
When and how did you first come into contact with music?
I still remember the day the music teacher in elementary school introduced us to the recorder. Very quickly, I transitioned to the flute, and a whole world opened up to me that shaped my later life.
Who or what prompted you to pursue music professionally?
I attended the Trikala Music School (Gymnasium – Lyceum). There, the ensemble conductor recognized a particular aptitude in me and encouraged me to pursue a professional career in music. His trust and words moved me, and so I decided to study music.
Where did you study and which teachers shaped you?
I studied in Thessaloniki, at the Department of Music Science and Art of the University of Macedonia, specializing in flute, in the class of Prof. Katerina Zenz, where I received my degree with “Excellent” honors. At the same university and with the same professor, I completed my postgraduate program “Sciences and Arts of Music,” where I also excelled. I continue to develop musically by studying with flute soloist Natalia Gerakis, who has had the greatest influence on my musical thought and development. Additionally, I frequently travel abroad for masterclasses with renowned flutists. Among them, I single out Wally Hase, a great soloist and professor at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, who has also positively influenced me.
Have you participated in competitions? Was there one that decisively propelled your professional activity?
Participation in competitions is an important part of my musical journey. From my very first year of studies until today, I have had the joy and honor of being distinguished with first prizes in many competitions, the most significant being the “Urs Rüttimann” Flute Competition (the largest flute competition in Greece) and the “We Hear the Youth” competition. These awards played a decisive role in my musical development. Winning the Rüttimann Competition gave me the opportunity to perform as a soloist with the Athens State Orchestra at the Athens Concert Hall, interpreting F. Borne’s Carmen-Fantasie, while the “We Hear the Youth” competition, among other things, granted me a concert as a soloist with W. A. Mozart’s Flute Concerto in G major and the Underground Youth Orchestra.
When and where did you make your first public appearance?
While in my first year of specialization at the University of Macedonia, I was awarded in an internal university competition, which led to a collaboration as a soloist with the Symphony Orchestra of the University of Macedonia in C. W. Gluck’s Flute Concerto in G major, at the Thessaloniki Concert Hall.
Which of your performances to date will remain unforgettable?
Undoubtedly, my collaborations with the aforementioned symphony orchestras have been etched in my memory; as has the chamber music concert in the Dimitris Mitropoulos Hall of the Athens Concert Hall, which took place within the framework of the “We Hear the Youth” program. There, together with violinist Christoforos Petridis and pianist Evangelos Papamanolis (also award winners of the competition), we performed R. Schumann’s Romances arranged for flute and piano, and M. Bonis’s Suite for flute, violin, and piano. I also consider my collaboration with the Philharmonia Orchestra of Athens significant, in whose concerts I have the opportunity to play works from the symphonic repertoire.
What are your preferences in repertoire selection? Which repertoire do you feel suits you best?
Romanticism and Baroque are the musical periods I love, as I feel that with this repertoire I can express my psyche to a great extent. Favorite works for flute include R. Schumann’s Romances, C. Reinecke’s Flute Concerto, as well as J. S. Bach’s masterful works for flute. Of course, works for other instruments also move me, such as S. Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2, D. Shostakovich’s Leningrad Symphony, F. Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, and G. Mahler’s Symphonies Nos. 4, 5, and 9.
What musical dream would you like to fulfill? Which musician do you want to collaborate with in the future? Is there a hall where you would really like to give a concert? Which work do you definitely want to perform in the future?
I dare say that I dream of collaborating with, for me, the most important Greek soloist, violinist Leonidas Kavakos. I also dream of appearing as a soloist with an orchestra in the Christos Lambrakis Hall of the Athens Concert Hall, the most important concert hall in our country, thanks to its excellent acoustics and unique aesthetics. I would like to perform C. Reinecke’s Flute Concerto there.
How would you suggest we approach young people to get them involved in classical music?
I believe that musical experience is the most decisive way for someone to love music from a young age. What could be more effective than children and young people coming into contact with great classical music soloists? Than creating more platforms for younger generations to meet established artists, where through discussion, lessons, and perhaps joint concerts, knowledge, energy, and inspiration can be “transfused”?
What difficulties does a young musician face in Greece and the world today?
Musical engagement requires financial support to secure a good instrument and to pursue competitive studies at a high-level university. A young musician, therefore, needs a sponsor in the early years—whether that is family, an institution, or a wealthy art-loving private individual. An additional problem in Greece is the small number of orchestras; talented young people cannot easily find employment in a Greek symphony orchestra. The path in music—as in any art—requires great mental endurance, perseverance, and hard work.
Besides music, what are your favorite activities?
In recent years, I have been involved in swimming, which I consider absolutely essential for both my physical fitness and my musical performance. My favorite pastime is also photography; “capturing” the moment fascinates me and fills me with joy.
What are your goals for the future?
Aristotelian conceptions of life—entelechy, reaching the fulfillment of one’s nature—determine my choices. My goal, therefore, is continuous evolution: to live a constant state of flourishing, a life worth living. Persistent and structured work, along with integrity in dealings with others, will bring those musical collaborations, experiences, and emotions that will give meaning to my life.
Biography
Rafaela Kontou is an award-winning Greek flutist. As a soloist, orchestral musician, and member of chamber music ensembles, she has performed in major venues in Greece (Athens Concert Hall, Thessaloniki Concert Hall, Ioannis Despotopoulos Amphitheater and Aris Garoufalis Hall of the Athens Conservatoire, Olympia Municipal Music Theatre “Maria Callas,” etc.).
She regularly collaborates with the Philharmonia Orchestra of Athens, and was a member of the Symphony Orchestra of the Department of Music Science and Art (TMET) of the University of Macedonia (PAMAK), the “PNOES” Wind Orchestra of the TMET of PAMAK, the Greek Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the Trikala Youth Symphony Orchestra. She also collaborated with the Athens Classical Players string ensemble, which consists of members of the Athens State Orchestra. As a soloist, she has performed F. Borne’s Carmen Fantasy with the Athens State Orchestra, W.A. Mozart’s Flute Concerto in G major with the Underground Youth Orchestra under the direction of Catherine Larsen-Maguire, and Ch.W. Gluck’s Flute Concerto in G major with the Symphony Orchestra of the TMET of PAMAK.
She has received numerous awards, including: 1st Prize in the “Urs Rüttimann” Flute Competition, 1st Prize in the Panhellenic Music Competition “Orpheus Soloists” (competition among all instruments), 1st Prize in the Panhellenic Music Competition of UNESCO Arts, Letters and Sciences of Greece, 1st Prize in the “We Hear the Youth” Music Competition of the Kalogeropouleio Foundation, and 2nd Prize in the Concerto Performance Competition of the TMET of PAMAK. Following an audition, she was selected to give a recital in the “Young Artists for Young Artists” concert series at the Philippos Nakas Conservatory. As an excellent student, she was chosen to give a recital in the “Young Artists Cycle” at the Thessaloniki Concert Hall.
Rafaela Kontou is an honors graduate of the Department of Music Science and Art of the University of Macedonia with a specialization in flute, as well as an honors graduate of the Postgraduate Program “Sciences and Arts of Music” with a focus on flute from the TMET of PAMAK (class of Prof. Katrin Zenz). She continues her artistic development by studying with soloist and professor Natalia Gerakis.
She has actively participated in masterclasses and flute seminars with Mario Caroli, Wally Hase, Davide Formisano, Matvey Denim, Frank-Georg Jarke, Marilena Dori, Ria Georgiadi, Lambrou Karavasili, as well as in the stage anxiety management seminar “Preparing for Stage – How to be Confident ‘Letting Go Anxiety'” with Dr. Mandalina Dorgo.
