John Psathas New Zeibekiko

The 2011 Auckland Arts Festival presents:

JOHN PSATHAS: NEW ZEIBEKIKO
Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra (NZ)

“New Zeibekiko is my dream realised … It will be the most thrilling, terrifying, and moving experience to hear the music of my two cultures fused together [ in this way]”
- John Psathas

New Zeibekiko, a major new work for orchestra by internationally acclaimed New Zealand composer John Psathas, receives its world premiere in this year’s Festival. This exciting composition embodies Greece in all its glory, representing the iconic dance, the zeibekiko, and taking audiences on an invigorating journey.

Conducted by Hamish McKeich, the APO combines with two of the most intriguing Greek traditional musicians on the world music scene – Manos Achalinotopoulos (clarino and voice) and Vagelis Karypis (percussion, oud and voice) – to pay homage to John Psathas’ Greek heritage. The exhilarating concert celebrates 2,500 years of life and history, the personal, the passionate and the nostalgic and takes concert-goers on a hypnotic journey, inviting responses to the music’s pulsing rhythms and ancient haunting melodies.