International Chamber
Music Festival
Since its inception in 2001, the
International Pharos Chamber Music Festival has established itself as the
highlight of the Pharos Arts Foundation's Concert and Recital Series,
garnering enthusiastic acclaim from music lovers all over the world. The
Festival has become one of Europe's preeminent music festivals, guided by a
visionary spirit and dedicated to artistic excellence and innovation.
Contributing to its magic is the Festival's unique setting, the surrounding
of the magnificent ancient town of Palaipaphos. All concerts take place at
the Gothic Hall of The Royal Manor House at Kouklia, one of the finest
surviving monuments of Frankish architecture on the island and an
unparalleled venue for intimate chamber music performances. The building
also houses an archaeological museum, which records the rich history of
human activity in the region from about 2800 BC to the present day. The
Royal Manor House, which is part of the Cyprus Tourism Organisation's "Aphrodite's Cultural Route", is also a UNESCO World Heritage site. Palaipaphos, or Old Paphos, was a city-kingdom of Cyprus and one of the most
celebrated pilgrimage centres of the ancient Greek world. It was the site of
a famous sanctuary of Aphrodite, the oldest remains of which date back to
the 12th century BC. Join us in a leisurely exploration of the history and
cultural heritage of the western region of Cyprus.
Exploring the many forms of the genre of chamber music, the Festival
encompasses an astonishing array of instrumental combinations and
repertoire, ranging from early Baroque to Contemporary music, featuring also
a number of Cyprus premieres. The International Pharos Chamber Music
Festival maintains also a strong tradition of community service, with
educational concerts organised for primary education students of the
surrounding areas.
Some highlights of past Festivals:
In 2002, the Vienna String Soloists performed with Cypriot
conductor/pianist Spiros Pisinos.
In 2003, the Pharos Soloists a group of talented young musicians from
all over the world led by Levon Chilingirian - performed a new work by
Cypriot composer Andreas Moustoukis in Nicosia, Paphos, London and Prague.
In 2004, the Festival was themed - The Spirit of Europe - Mediaeval to
Contemporary Music' and a new work by Cypriot composer Yiannis Kyriakides
specially commissioned by the Pharos Arts Foundation was given its premiere
by the London Sinfonietta.
The 2005 Festival again saw many renowned ensembles in Cyprus, such as the
Ysaye Quartet; the Baroque ensemble Florilegium with soprano Sine Bundgaard;
and the Moscow Virtuosi chamber orchestra led by Theodor Kurrentsis, a
rising star in conducting. The Moscow Virtuosi performed a new work by
Andreas Moustoukis.
The 2006 Festival presented the Chilingirian Quartet as well as nine
internationally-renowned chamber musicians, including violinist Dmitry
Sitkovetsky, pianist Jeremy Menuhin and cellist Steven Isserlis, in eight
concerts in Nicosia and Paphos
In 2007, thirteen renowned soloists and chamber musicians participated in
three concerts in Nicosia and four concerts at the Kouklia Manor House. A
varied programme ranging from Bach and Mozart to Brahms, Schumann and
Mendelssohn, as well as works by lesser known contemporary composers such as
Alfvén, Arensky and Aho was presented by legendary artists such as flutist
Sharon Bezaly, cellist David Geringas, violinists David Juriz and Christoph
Poppen and violist Diemut Poppen.
In 2008 the Pharos Arts Foundation
welcomed to Cyprus eighteen world-renowned chamber musicians for eight
concerts on eight consecutive evenings at the Royal Manor House in Kouklia.
Artists included violinists Henning Kraggerud and Ilya Gringolts, cellist
Christopher Richeter, pianist Yevgeny Sudbin, clarinetist Chen Halevi and
mezzo-soprano Romina Basso. The programme encompassed a range of works for
strings, piano, clarinet and horn by composers including Brahms, Chopin,
Beethoven, Mozart, Schubert, Schumann, Tchaikovsky, Elgar and Shostakovich.
The 2009 Festival featured a line-up of
eighteen world-acclaimed musicians, including violinist Daishin Kashimoto,
violist Vladimir Mendelssohn, cellists Steven Isserlis and Rohan de Saram,
pianist Philippe Cassard and soprano Gitta-Maria Sjoberg. The Festival
comprised eight concerts on eight consecutive evenings, presented on 28, 29,
30, 31 May and 1, 2, 3, 4 June 2009 at the Gothic Hall of the Royal Manor
House at Kouklia. Exploring the many forms of the genre of chamber music,
the Festival encompassed an astonishing array of instrumental combinations
and repertoire, ranging from Haydn and Mozart to Schönberg and Schnittke, as
well as a number of Cyprus premieres. In celebration of the 200th
anniversary of Haydn’s death and the 200thanniversary of Mendelssohn’s
birth, the Festival drew attention to the great chamber output of the two
composers.
