On Sunday 18 November the Greek Orthodox Community of Melbourne and Victoria will proudly co- present a special event to be held in Melbourne to launch a new musical work, by Greek Australian composer, Arthur Rorris titled Echoes as well as a tribute concert to commemorate the events in Greece in 1973 at the polytechnic.
In The CD song cycle Echoes, Rorris sets the words of famous Greek poet Nikiforos Vrettakos to music sung passionately by our very own and talented singer Anthea Sidiropoulos.
Melbourne, will join Adelaide, Sydney and many more cities and towns in Greece to mark the 100 years of Vrettakos birth – this year, 2012 which has been proclaimed the year of Vrettakos by the Greek Ministry of Arts and Culture. The Melbourne concerts are presented and sponsored by the GOCMV – Antipodes, Democritus and the Greek Resistance Fighters League of Victoria.
Theo Markos from the GOCMV said: “This will be a very special event with not one but 2 concerts performed by Greek Australian musicians marking two very significant milestones in Greek history and culture” “Nikiforos Vrettakos is one of the great Greek poets and Nobel finalist for literature. In Melbourne we will be joining in the festivities to remember him and his work.”
“The occasion of the 39th anniversary of the polytechnic uprising allows us to provide a special musical tribute to these events along with the work of Vrettakos who paid his own tribute to the students through his poetry and now, with the release of this exciting new work, Echoes, we are able to promote the work of Vrettakos through music as well.”
“This is an excellent way to commemorate such important events and promote understanding of Greek culture and history in the broader Australian community as well.”
Appearing on stage will be: Echoes Launch – 100 years of Nikiforos Vrettakos Arthur Rorris Composer/Baglama * Anthea sidiropoulos Vocal * Ann Lehmann Guitar * Kaija Upenieks Cello * Jacob Papadopoulos Bouzouki * Christos Fifis MC The Athens Polytechnic 1973 Commemoration Concert Spiros Papoutsis Vocals/Synthesizer * Jacob Papadopoulos Bouzouki * Nikos Kapralos Guitar * Maria Papoutsis-Kotsiras Vocals * Anthea sidiropoulos Vocals/Percussion.
The concert will be held between 3:00 – 5:00 pm on Sunday 18 November at the Bella Union, Victorian Trades Hall, Cnr Victoria and Lygon Streets with the doors opening at 2:00 pm. Seats are limited and it is advisable to buy them early either online at http://www.bellaunion.com.au by phone on 03 9650 5699 or at the door. More information about the Echoes project and the composer can be found at www.arthurrorris.com