Music & Culture Archives - Athens Music Week

Olga Papadopoulou (GR)

admino — Thu, 25 May 2023 20:33:49 +0000

Olga was raised in Athens, studied sound engineering and acoustics, classical piano and advanced
classical harmony. She has a great passion for all forms of musical expression and its life-giving,
healing powers, always looking to grow her knowledge base, currently studying jazz piano and sound
therapy, among others.

Her work experience in the music sector commenced as a junior sound engineer in recording
studios, on-air technician at radio stations and freelance voice over artist. During those years she
was actively involved in the artistic direction and events curation of the Athens International Short
Film Festival.

For almost two decades she has been actively involved in the production and implementation of
numerous live events, concerts and festivals, working for and with leading cultural centers of Athens
as well as creative teams across the country.

She is currently a part of the Athens Music Week production team also collaborating with the
HUB for the Exchange of Music Innovation (HEMI) coordinating the HEMI Μusic Αwards & HEMI
Ιncubator activities.

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Christos Galilaias (GR)

admino — Wed, 24 May 2023 09:01:30 +0000

Dr. Christos Galilaias was born in Thessaloniki and is a professor and string coordinator for the George State University School of Music in Atlanta, US. He is a regular member of international music competition panels and has also taught music in many international seminars and masterclasses.

Christos took his first violin lessons with his father Kosmas Galilaias and Stelios Kafantaris and upon graduating he was awarded First Prize and Gold Metal for his excellent performance. He continued his studies with a scholarship from the Greek State Scholarships Foundation under the instruction of the renowned professor Almita Vamos at the Oberlin Conservatory in the United States, where he received the Dean’s Talent Award. Later, he was awarded the Alexandra Triandi Scholarship from the Megaron Athens Concert Hall and a scholarship from the prestigious Juilliard School of New York, where he studied with the distinguished professors Dorothy DeLay and Naoko Tanaka and received his master’s degree. In 2005, he completed his academic education with a doctorate of Musical Arts from the State University of New York at Stony Brook.

Since his debut appearance at the age of 14, Galilaias has performed as a soloist with many orchestras, like the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra, the Athens State Orchestra, the Chamber Orchestra Greek Camerata, the Symphonic Orchestra of Prague, the Canadian Chamber Orchestra, the Philharmonic Orchestra of Music Academy of Vienna and the Gustav Mahler Orchestra.

In 1997, Christos Galilaias won the First Prize in a Greek Scientific Society Competition and at the Greek National Competition for Violin, held by the Cultural Association Techni in collaboration with the State Orchestra of Thessaloniki and the Cultural Capital of Europe Thessaloniki 1997. Four years later, Galilaias received the First Prize in the Kate Neal Kinley Competition of the University of Illinois in the U.S.

Christos Galilaias has collaborated with significant international musicians, like Dimitris Sgouros, Leos Swarovski, Ilarion Ionescu-Galaţi, Loris Tjeknavorian, Angel Stankov, Ovidiu Balan, James Brooks-Bruzzese, Alexandros Myrat, Olaf Koch, Byron Fidetzis, Wolfgang Roegner, Brandt Fredriksen, Atis Bankas, Andris Nelsons, Radu Postăvaru, Louis Lane and Paul Polivnick. He has also performed the Brahms Double Concerto next to the famous cellist Mischa Maisky with the National Symphony Orchestra of Latvia and has collaborated with the Borodin Quartet of Moscow and the George Enescu Philarmonic of Bucharest.

Galilaias has performed as a soloist in over 30 countries, like the United States, Canada, Portugal, Italy, Germany, France, Austria, Latvia, Brazil, Argentina, Romania, Bulgaria, Armenia, Cyprus, El Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica and Uruguay and has played in the most famous concert halls like Musikverein (Vienna), Gasteig (Munich) Smetana Hall (Prague), Carnegie Hall (New York), Kennedy Center (Washington, DC), Megaron Concert Hall in Athens and Thessaloniki.

In the summer of 2002, Galilaias founded the chamber orchestra Greek Camerata and toured North, Mid and South America, staging over 30 concerts in famous halls, like Kennedy Center in Washington DC. During that time, he also released a CD album. Since 2003, he has been the artistic director of the Demetria Chamber Music Festival. He is the Artistic Director of the MEGARON Concert Hall of Thessaloniki since 2021.

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Costis Nikiforakis “Black Athena” (GR)

admino — Thu, 18 May 2023 14:12:09 +0000

Black Athena are a DJ duo, a radio show and more recently a record label, conceived in and around the centre of Athens during the first decade of the millennium. The Black Athena philosophy is as much about the local as it is about the global. In an underground music field that increasingly is about A&Ring music directly from the internet and creating labels spearheaded by artists already accepted as “cool”, Black Athena is all about having a personal ‘real’ connection with the artists, helping develop them and putting them on a global stage. In a country that has been plagued by uncertainty and financial instability, Black Athena believe that it is paramount to put young people at the forefront and help them succeed through their creativity and love for music. Their recipe is the same across all the media they work with: black music, past present and future. The sound of Black Athena is as much about the sound of contemporary US rap as expressed by Kendrick Lamar, Drake and A$ap Rocky, as it is about the Deep House blueprint of Moodymann and Theo Parrish. It is as much about Wiley, Skepta and D Double E as it is about Prince, Marvin Gaye, Prince Jammy & Chic. Saying that they wouldn’t even have second thoughts about releasing or playing an unheard 1970s Synth record, or an 80s New Wave band. Music is music, and they love good music!

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George Polymeneas (GR)

admino — Tue, 16 May 2023 12:02:47 +0000

George Polymeneas is a journalist, writer and linguist, and since 2007 he has been working in the Greek media market. He has collaborated with local and international tiles (provocateur.gr, Kappa Magazine, ratpack.gr, Playboy Greece, Esquire Greece. etc.), and he has also taught workshops on journalistic writing. He is currently editor in chief of provocateur.gr, a leading digital media outlet about youth culture. He holds a Ph.D. in Critical Discourse Analysis from Pompeu Fabra University (Barcelona), and he has published several articles/papers on Greek political/media discourse in scientific journals.

Social Media Links:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/george-polymeneas-b19461175/
https://www.instagram.com/gpolymeneas/?hl=el
https://www.facebook.com/giorgos.polymeneas/

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Nikos Stefanidis (GR)

petrosadmin — Tue, 16 May 2023 04:10:22 +0000

Nikos Stefanidis received the “Europa Nostra” in 1994 for the reconstruction and the idea for new uses in buildings of industrial heritages.

Nikos Stefanidis has been working as music producer, promoter of concerts around Greece, has also business activities in tourism (Thalatta Camping 2004-2008), and in concept restaurants.

Other notable mentions include:

Radio 88miso (1993- since now) – (founder-partner- CEO).
River Party Nestorio festival 1995-1996 restart concept and management.
Gaia Festival 1998-2008 (and now restart).
Principal Club Theatre (establisher & Partner) 2004 – since now.
Studies: Management of Tourism Business & Economic University.
In 2012 was the local partner for WOMEX 2012 in Thessaloniki.

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Aggelos Kleitsikas (GR)

Artur — Mon, 15 May 2023 17:34:23 +0000

Aggelos Kleitsikas grew up in Athens, in an environment where music was not merely a soundtrack but a way of thinking. Since 2015, he has been actively involved as a music and culture journalist, with his work published in leading Greek media outlets such as Avopolis.gr, LIFO, SONIK, and Rolling Stone Greece.

Alongside this, he has built a strong professional background in marketing, PR, and strategic communication, collaborating with major international brands. In recent years, he has also worked on a wide range of cultural projects as part of the team at Technopolis City of Athens. This experience has allowed him to creatively bridge the cultural and corporate worlds, translating vision into narrative and content into strategy.

As Artistic Director of Athens Jazz, the country’s oldest and largest jazz festival, he envisions further strengthening its international identity, its active support of the local jazz community, and its contemporary artistic direction. Creating meaningful musical experiences, fostering the sustainable growth of cultural institutions, and connecting audiences, artists, and ideas lie at the core of his philosophy.

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Dimitris Kanellopoulos (GR)

petrosadmin — Wed, 10 May 2023 15:52:20 +0000

Born in Athens 1979. I studied University for the Creative Arts (‘01-’03) Visual Communication Design . Currently design director of “Synthesee” branding and design agency. I was also co-owner and design director of “The Comeback Studio” (‘12-‘19) and a member of the holistic film and design team “Within”.

I am also a design tutor, teaching web and graphic. I am an accredited lecturer at “Vakalo, Art & Design College”, teaching Graphic Applications in the 2nd year and Branding in the 3rd year at the BA Digital Design sector and Digital Branding in the Master of Digital Design sector.

Links:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dimitris-kanellopoulos-7bab242b/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dimkanello/

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Light (GR)

admino — Tue, 09 May 2023 19:34:44 +0000

Light is Greece’s most streamed Rapper, with a name that rings bells even in the United States. His talent was found when he was 17 years old and since then he is been a member and Co-owner of Capital Music. His first EP was released in 2015, entitled “Nero Greco” and followed a year after by the huge hit “Poios eimai. Among dozens of successful singles and collaborations he has since released another three solo albums and a collaborative album with fellow Greek rapper “Hawk”. In 2019 he won his first MAD Video Music Award for his highly successful single “Mosca”. Light’s name crossed the atlantic when the internationally renowned NBA star Giannis Antetokonombo revealed on camera that Light is his favourite artist, while their friendship was “sealed” on Greek soil, at the “Antetokounmbros” event in Sepolia, in the summer of 2019. His massive success is being solidified for almost 3 years now as he sits on top of all streaming platforms and counts over a million monthly listeners.

Instagram: http://bit.ly/2TerF3V
TikTok: https://bit.ly/3Fl7rKs

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Peter Astedt (SE)

admino — Mon, 08 May 2023 09:22:46 +0000

Peter Åstedt has been working in the music industry for over 30 years. He started his own record label, Dead Frog Records, at the age of fifteen in 1990. Over the years he has started several companies in different fields in the music industry like PR, Publishing, Distribution, Sync placements, Management, Festivals, and Artist Development. Today he oversees several of the departments on Musichelp which is an umbrella company of different companies in the music industry.

Peter has also been involved in working to structure cities to become music cities. He has worked with five of the top twenty most-streamed songs in the world. He writes a popular music blog that is also published in Cashbox Magazine Canada and Record World International. He is also part owner of Cashbox Radio an international online radio station. He is now a booker and curator on Sweden’s new showcase festival Future Echoes, Norrköping Music Day and Lilla By Festivalen, and a couple of more showcase festivals. He also works with EMG collectives where he develops new artists from around the world.

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/peter.astedt
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/peterastedt/
Linkedin – https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-%C3%A5stedt-12b392a/
Tiktok – https://www.tiktok.com/@peterastedt
Twitter – https://twitter.com/PeterAstedt

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Antonis Zouganelis (GR)

petrosadmin — Sun, 07 May 2023 10:52:03 +0000

Artistic Director of the AthensJazz and huge admirer of the British Jazz explosion, Antonis Zouganelis is currently the music and events consultant of Technopolis – City of Athens and the Owner of the music consulting agency TheCluster. He grew up in Nikaia, Piraeus and studied at the American College of Greece.

Having worked in the music sector for more than 20 years, he has been moving around in various positions and businesses within the industry. From artistic direction to artists’ management and International bookings, from intellectual property to creative direction and production, from events & festivals production direction and management to marketing management and from entertainment concept design to cultural management and consulting in music projects & businesses.

He’s a versatile Gen X.

Dream Job: Running a campsite by the beach

Links:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/antonis.zouganelis

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