The sound of a piano in an airport lounge, on the subway, in a park, at a bank, at the entrance to a department store, or just in the middle of the street. What would the whole city look like if it turned into a huge concert venue, where both small and large piano concerts take place? The answer comes to give The Piano City of Athensthe first festival to take place in many parts of Athens, aiming to convey the joy of music to the public.

This important music festival, which has already experienced great success in cities such as Berlin, Madrid, Milan and New York, will make its debut in the Greek capital May 12, 13 and 14, 2023. But how did this project get to our country? “This organization was brought to Greece by my company, which has been responsible for many musical performances and festivals for many years,” says K. Maria Papalambrouactress and co-founder Robin4arts.

Piano City was founded by Andreas Kern, a pianist, composer and dreamer from Berlin. “15 years ago, when I was living in the German capital, I visited Piano City Berlin. In particular, I took my daughter to a master class for children as part of the festival, and since then this project has remained in my memory,” says Ms. Papalamprou.

She and her team were impressed by the innovation of the event and the fact that every city becomes a place where music and culture is appreciated, supported and, most importantly, enjoyed on a broad private level.

“Last year I thought it was time to finally introduce Piano City to Athens as well. This is a project through which you communicate with an audience of all nationalities and ages, music has no language,” explains the organizer and adds that “we received the rights from the official organizer, Piano City, and so we started negotiations with the Ministry of Culture, the Municipality of Athens and other organs.” The authors managed to realize the idea, and now Athens is part of this international musical movement.

The goal of Piano City Athens is to “spread” piano concertos in unexpected places, openly and free of charge to the whole world. Therefore, we will listen to live music in squares, museums, conservatories, schools, galleries and at the airport, where the festival will end with a “piano battle”. But in addition to public places, concerts will also be held in homes. In general, home concerts will be 70 in number. “They are widespread in Europe, for Greece they are a bit unprecedented. Thus, virtuosos and piano lovers, selected by the artistic commission, will demonstrate their skill and talent with a repertoire from classical to contemporary. This will greatly help their promotion as artists,” says Ms. Papalamprow. And emphasizes that although full program not yet announced at pianocityathens.gr but expected soon, the answer is already there.

“Piano, the greatest shade of emotion”

The piano is characterized by many as the “king” of musical instruments, as it is the most independent of the rest. What does this mean to Mrs. Papalumprow? “It has been my favorite musical instrument since I was a child, and I took lessons on it for several years. For me, the piano evokes the most nuanced emotions. It touches me more than any other instrument.”

The emotions created by listening to the sound of the piano are really powerful. But, as a recent study by Scientific Reports found, this musical instrument can help reduce anxiety, anxiety, and also cope with signs of depression.

For a pianist, psychology is complex. “A lot of factors come into play,” says the award-winning pianist. Titos Gouvelis. “A pianist must convey, convey to the public a musical, emotional message. This is a factor that certainly increases stress, responsibility and the desire to convey what you have experienced. Since then, every time we have to deal with a project, we know that we have to deal with technical difficulties.”

As for the public, he explains that it’s a two-way process. “Not only the pianist communicates with the public, but also the one who sends his vibrations to the musician. So knowing that what you are doing is acceptable is a huge mental power.”

According to Mr. Gouvelis, who will take part in Piano City Athens, the piano is an instrument that “has a huge solo repertoire – it can withstand a whole concert, a solo concert with works written only for piano solo, and offer the public the same . fullness and enjoyment.