Athens State Orchestra

Vassilis Christopoulos

MANOLIS KALOMOIRIS (1883-1962)        
Triptych for orchestra – “In memory of a hero”

SERGEI PROKOFIEV (1891-1953)
Concerto no. 2 for piano and orchestra in G minor, opus 16

PETER ILICH TCHAIKOVSKY (1840-1893)
Symphony no. 4 in F minor, opus 36

The three composers in tonight’s programme share a penchant for incorporating folk motifs into their works. And while this may not be immediately obvious in Prokofiev’s colossally difficult Second piano concerto, the opposite is true of both Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony and Kalomoiris’ Triptych for orchestra. Interestingly enough, Kalomoiris actually conducted this work in the inaugural concert of the newly-formed Athens State Orchestra on 28 February 1943; its inclusion in tonight’s programme is the orchestra’s way of honouring the fiftieth anniversary of his death.