06/12/2024 - Art Studio 55
Burek duo
Burek duo consists of oud player Andreas Krambias from Cyprus and cellist Maria Doumeni Cronholm from Sweden and Greece. The duo met in Thessaloniki in 2019, where their collaboration first started. Their unique combination of instruments creates a distinctive soundscape, which is both lyrical and playful. With the melody at the forefront, they develop colourful arrangements framed by improvisation and intuitive interplay.
Burek duo plays folk music from Greece, Cyprus and Sweden, as well as Ottoman classical music. In the very regions where their music originates, one can find the Burek pastry, which, much like the Burek duo’s music, comes in a variety of styles and flavours. The duo has performed in festivals and concerts in Sweden and Cyprus, and in 2021, it released its first album, ISKIOS, an independent production.
At this Showcase edition, new compositions created by the musicians will be presented, along with existing repertoire. The new compositions are influenced by their respective musical traditions and are set within a contemporary musical context. Some of the pieces will be included in the duo’s second album, to be recorded in 2025. This project explores the fusion and interaction between different traditions, offering the audience a unique and fresh sound.
Sis I cracked my head open
Michael Neocleous: Electric Guitar
Andreas Poyiatziis: Bass
Ioannis Triantafyllou: Drums
Marietta Ieride: Viola
Lara Ambouzaide: Vocals
@sis.i.cracked.my.head.open
The music of Sis I cracked my head open cannot be easily described by a single genre. Listening to them feels like a sonic adventure, a story, one with beginning, middle, but usually no concise ending. If the genre had to be defined, it would a mixture of progressive rock, fusion and indie with harmony heavily based on post-bebop jazz and some hints of pop sprinkled throughout. To this date, they have participated in Fengaros High 2024, Make Music Cyprus 2024 and Fengaros Music Village 2024. They are currently recording their first album, and experimenting with more improvisation-based music, also incorporating the vibraphone.
At the Showcase, they will present a repertoire of original songs that are composed and based on an idea that usually begins from the guitarist. The band’s music showcases different emotions, while simultaneously expressing the rawness of music written by teenagers through a genre that we like to call progressive jazz-rock; although based around jazz, it has many indie influences in addition to elements from other genres. Their songs are telling a story that is part of us as we show our journey through this process of experimentation and self-discovery.
07/12/2024 - Art Studio 55
OGMIOS
OGMIOS is a dynamic live act that merges atmospheric soundscapes with powerful bursts of techno and noise, creating an immersive and unpredictable experience. Their performances combine chants, trance-like vocals, and layered instrumentation to tell fragmented stories that are often abruptly interrupted by hard-hitting beats. The band explores themes of disruption and duality, with moments of softness contrasting with intense, almost chaotic energy. OGMIOS offers an engaging, theatrical journey that defies easy categorisation while captivating audiences with its unique blend of sound and performance art.
Andis Skordis: Guitar, Drum, Voice, Keyboards
Panagiotis Minas: Guitar, drums, electronics
@ogmios_slays_gargantan
Alexandros Adam Quartet
The Alexandros Adam Quartet, based in Amsterdam and formed by Alexandros Adam, offers a blend of original compositions influenced by Greek traditional and rebetikο music, fused with jazz. The musicians have been playing together in different settings all over Europe, for over four years, ever since their studies at the Amsterdam Conservatory. Their music spans from straight-ahead jazz to pieces rich with traditional Greek elements, showing not only their diverse musical influences but also communicating the emotional weight of current global events through sound.
Alexandros's original compositions, written over the past year, aim to give music a new form by blending rebetiko and traditional music with improvisational jazz, while maintaining the classic jazz quartet format: double bass, drums, guitar, and saxophone. Beyond musical influences, these compositions seek to convey the emotions we all share today in relation to contemporary global issues, such as the ongoing wars surrounding our country, and the memories of the war Cyprus endured.
Alexandros Adam: Electric guitar
Marios Charalambous: Tenor saxophone
Nikolas Tsangaris: Drums
Samuel Kiel: Double bass