An event dedicated to the memory of Yorgos Sicilianos

Description:

In the “Aris Garoufalis” Hall of the Athens Conservatoire on Monday, 18 February 2019, the Hellenic Parliament Foundation for Parliamentarism and Democracy honoured the memory of Yorgos Sicilianos (1920-2005), a significant Greek classical composer, through an event in the “People Worthy of Honour” series. The event began with a greeting from Niki Maroniti, General Secretary of the Hellenic Parliament Foundation and Associate Professor at Panteion University, followed by an introduction from composer Joseph Papadatos, Vice-Rector of the Ionian University, who also moderated the discussion. Markos Tsetsos, Professor of Music Aesthetics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, highlighted Sicilianos’ contributions as a thinker and reformer in music, focusing on his values of rationalism, meritocracy, selflessness, and humanistic modernism. Conductor Nikos Tsouchlos, Associate Professor at the Ionian University, discussed the diversity and significance of Sicilianos’ work, tracing his evolution from Greek influences to progressive modernism. Anastasios Mavroudis, violinist, composer, and musicologist, PhD from the University of London, analysed and interpreted Sicilianos’ Violin and Piano Sonata, Op. 45, followed by a live performance by Mavroudis and pianist Lysianne Chen. The event concluded with a performance of the Cello and Piano Sonata, Op. 59, by Ellie Filippou and Maria Eustratiadi. The event was attended by the late composer’s son, Linos-Alexandre Sicilianos, Professor at the Faculty of Law of the University of Athens and Vice-President of the European Court of Human Rights; Panagiotis Dimaras, President of the Friends of Music Society; university music faculty members, musicologists, musicians, and music enthusiasts, as well as members of the Executive and Scientific Committee of the Hellenic Parliament Foundation.