In summer 2023, the Greek city Elefsina, European Capital of Culture 2023, invited the Dresdner Sinfoniker for an extravagant performance: The ensemble impregnated the Sky above Elefsina with music and intimately connected with public yet little-known places of the seaside town. Music specifically composed and arranged for the occasion was performed alongside other works in Elefsina’s unique locations.

The musical journey began in the sanctuary of Eleusis: 16 musicians of the Dresdner Sinfoniker performed at various locations in the ancient excavation site in the center of Elefsina and invited residents and visitors to gather for the concert. This call was taken up by Persephone/The Red Carpet and passed on to the actual concert venue – the old Vlycha ship cemetery – where the rest of the program was performed. The concert embraced music from diverse historical and cultural eras. Works by Venetian Renaissance composer Giovanni Gabrieli were performed alongside music by film composer John Williams and contemporary pieces by Konstantia Gourzi and Wieland Reissmann. Exceptional arrangements for french horns, alphorns, trumpets and tubas provided a common link in an unusual classical concert reflecting a narrative of cultural transitions through the centuries.

Dresdner Sinfoniker
Wieland Reissmann: conductor & arrangements
Konstantinos Terzakis: conductor

A production of the Dresdner Sinfoniker in cooperation with Phormigx. The Dresdner Sinfoniker are supported by the Saxon State Ministry for Science, Culture and Tourism and by the City of Dresden through the Office for Culture and Monument Protection. They are co-financed by tax revenue based on the Saxon State Parliament’s budget.