Summer Music Academy
T
he Summer Music Academy of the Cyprus
Youth Symphony Orchestra has become an
important part of Cyprus’music educational activ-
ities. The Academy takes place at the high moun-
tain resort of Pedoulas (1200m above sea level)
during the last two weeks of August.
Attention is given over to master classes, wind
orchestra, sectional rehearsals and chamber
music training as well as preparing a symphonic
programme. Towards the end of theAcademy, this
symphonic programme is presented at an evening
concert open to the public at the Events Hall of the
Pedoulas Gymnasium.
The Academy has taken place at the Gymnasium’s
facilities since 2007, after theywere renovated using
funding offered by the Cultural Services of the
Ministry of Education and Culture. The community
of Pedoulas now identifies itself with the Academy
(and the concerts given by the Orchestra), which
attracts both foreign and Cypriot tourists.
This year, the Academy took place between 20
and 29 August, accommodating 80 young people
between 9 and 26 years old. During the Academy,
experienced teachers coached the youngmusicians
and at the same time, the orchestra prepared
the programme which was presented in two
concerts. The first concert took place in Nicosia
and the second in Rome, after an invitation from
the Association of Cypriots in Italy, within the
framework of the week dedicated to the promotion
of Cyprus’ history and culture.
This invitation is of vast importance and a unique
opportunity to promote the talent of Cypriot youths
abroad and endorse the important work which is
being done within theYouth Orchestra’s activities,
Cyprus’most important youth music ensemble.
The programme included Gioachino Antonio
Rossini’s
Overture to The Barber of Seville
;
Alkis Baltas’
Cypriot Suite
; Maurice Ravel’s
Tzigane
(Soloist: Andreas Zinonos – violin); and
Antonín Leopold Dvořák’s
Symphony No. 9 in E
minor
, From the NewWorld, Op. 95.
Whilst preparing the programme for the concerts,
the Cyprus Youth Symphony Orchestra also
welcomed the Music Lyceum Choirs in Pedoulas,
as well as the cast and collaborators who will work
on the preparation of theOrchestra’s next important
grand production; the opera
Cavalleria Rusticana
by Italian composer Pietro Mascagni. The training
of the soloists and the Choirs took place over 7 days
during the SummerAcademy and will continue for
a further 7 days during the SpringAcademy.
The opera takes place in Easter 2015. In free
translation the title means
Rural Chivalry
and the
setting is a village in Sicily. It is a dramatic story
of passion with a tragic ending. Two concerts will
take place on 24 and 25 April at the Strovolos
Municipal Theatre, Nicosia.
58
59
istis in Nicosia and others, including
Diamanti’ s
Family, Helena and Nikos Elioti. The exhibition
also included repatriated icons from the Turkish-
OccupiedAreas of Cyprus.
The exhibition was accompanied by an illustrated
catalogue of 280 pages with scientific texts, de-
tailed entries of exhibited works and a rich photo-
graphic appendix under the scientific supervision
of Dr Charalambos Chotzakoglou.
Addressing the exhibition’s opening, Dr Chot-
zakoglou pointed out that this year’s takeover of
the Greek Presidency of the EU, for the fifth time
since joining the European Union, coincided with
two historic anniversaries: The completion of 180
years since the declaration of Athens as the capital
of the modern Greek state, and the 10
th
anniversary
of Cyprus’ accession to the European Union. “The
19
th
century liberated Athens city from Ottoman
rule, has acted as a lighthouse towards Hellenism
in Cyprus, whereas the accession of Cyprus into
the European Union has acted as a cut-off land-
mark in the history of the two countries,” he said.
In a bid to highlight the relations between
Cyprus and mainland Greece, the exhibition
explored two time-periods, during which the
Cypriot and Greek administrations were under
the “guardianship” of Western powers; namely
Britain and Bavaria respectively.
“The aim of this exhibition is to explore attitudes
and spontaneous feelings of common people, to-
wards the imposed separation of Cyprus from the
Greek mainland, as expressed through the reli-
gious art,” Dr Chotzakoglou explained.
“The devoutness of the island’s inhabitants has
been noted by numerous visitors and travellers,
and ecclesiastical art genuinely captured this pure
and spontaneous folk sentiment,” he added.
Tasos Mitsopoulos, a friend
and promoter of Culture
Before stepping down, Dr Chotzakoglou paid
tribute “to a friend of the Society, and promoter of
Culture and the great spirit of Hellenism, who is
unfortunately no longer among us – the late Tasos
Mitsopoulos, who passed away on 15 March this
year, after suffering a brain haemorrhage and heart
attack that left him in an irreversible condition.
The exhibition’s inauguration night marked the
100
th
day since the young, former Defence Minis-
ter’s death. “His last visit to the Society of Cypriot
Studies was a few months ago, when participat-
ing in our Scientific Symposium ‘Cyprus-Russia’,
co-organised with the Russian Embassy and the
Russian Cultural Centre, during which he read his
profound address and imparted several political
and cultural meanings.”
Dr Charalambos Chotzakoglou, Director of the Society of Cypriot Studies, takes guests on a tour of the icon-exhibition, on opening night
