Cosmos: C.P.E. Bach – St Matthew Passion (1781)

Watch the event:

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) presents the musicians of the Camerata – The Friends of Music Orchestra and the ERT Greek National Radio Choir in St. Matthew Passion by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach. The concert, which is part of the Cosmos series of music events, will be held on Good Monday, April 26, at 20:30, at the Stavros Niarchos Hall. The Camerata is directed by the renowned harpsichordist and conductor Markellos Chryssicos. 

St Matthew Passion by C. P. E. Bach was premiered in Hamburg during the period of Lent in 1781, and belongs in the category of Pasticcio. In this genre, typical of the baroque era, composers recycled earlier works, of their own or by other composers. The performance-adaptation of tested and familiar material was very popular with audiences, and served to renew their interest in works of an earlier aesthetic. 

Introverted and concise, written for few vocalists and a small instrumental ensemble, C.P.E. Bach’s St Matthew Passion draws from works by Gottfried August Homilius and Georg Benda, as well as the composer’s father, Johann Sebastian Bach. In contrast with his father’s renowned surviving St Matthew and St John versions, the Passions composed by C.P.E. Bach (twenty-one in total) were not written to frame the sermon of Good Friday, which explains their brevity. The upcoming concert marks the work’s first presentation in Greece in accordance with the Historically Informed Performance approach. 

Markellos Chryssicos began by studying the harpsichord at the Vignanelli School of Athens, graduating with distinction, and receiving first prize and the school’s commendation. He went on to study in Paris, under S. Romeo  and Olivier Baumont, at the Μοzarteum under Kenneth Gilbert and Siegbert Rampe, and completed his education at the Geneva Conservatoire, as the very last student taught by Christiane Jaccottet. As assistant conductor to George Petrou, he has contributed to several award-winning recordings for MDG, DECCA and SONY. He is a founding member of the Latinitas Nostra ensemble, with whom he has performed 17th century lyrical works at the Athens Festival, the Athens Concert Hall and the GNO Alternative Stage, in collaboration with directors such as Argyro Chioti, Apostolia Papadamaki, Nikos Karathanos, Thanos Papakonstantinou, Giannis Skourletis, and Katerina Evangelatou. As a maestro, he frequently conducts the Camerata, the Athens State Orchestra, and the State Orchestra of Thessaloniki, as well as international ensembles such as the Irish Baroque Orchestra, the Βach Consort Wien, the Kammerakademie Potsdam, etc. He directed and presented the show “Palimpsest” on the Greek Radio station Trito Programma, and is a member of the Board of Directors of the GNO. 

The Musicians of the Camerata - The Friends of Music Orchestra (internationally known as Armonia Atenea) are considered one of the leading ensembles specializing in historically informed performances. The Athenian orchestra, whose particular emphasis is on the music of Händel, has received the highest acclaim in the international Press, and makes regular appearances in major concert and festival halls across Europe. 

The ERT Choir was founded in 1977 by Manos Hadjidakis, then director of the Greek National Radio Third Program, and was soon established as one of the best ensembles in the country. Its repertoire – in excess of 1,000 works – includes a remarkable range of time periods, composers and musical idioms up to the twenty-first century, Greek choral pieces, and several operas. Under the general direction of Mikis Theodorakis, it performed numerous concerts in Italy, France, Germany, Tunisia, the U.S., Canada, Finland, etc., and took part in the opening ceremony for the Olympic Games in 2004. It has collaborated with all Greek and major international orchestras (Berlin and Nuremberg Symphonic, London and Capitole de Toulouse Philharmonic, etc.) and with all acclaimed Greek and several leading international maestros (Masur, Menuhin, Ashkenazy, Rilling, Marriner). 

Soloists:
Yannis Kalyvas 
Chrissa Maliamani
Marios Sarantidis
Vassilis Dimakopoulos
Iason Marmaras

Camerata – The Friends of Music Orchestra
ERT Greek National Radio Choir
ERT Choir master: Michalis Papapetrou

Conductor: Markellos Chryssicos

Good Monday 26 April , 20.30
STAVROS NIARCHOS HALL

You may watch the event live on this page, as well as on SNFCC's Facebook page and YouTube channel.

 Due to public health measures, there may be changes regarding either the staging of the event, or the maximum number of participants.