Katerina Evangelatou, Artistic Director of the Athens Epidaurus Festival, has made a donation of special symbolism by giving to the Organization the piano of her grandfather, the eminent composer and conductor Antiochos Evangelatos (1903-1981). Antiochos Evangelatos was a leading intellectual figure of our country with a valuable contribution to the field of music and modern Greek culture in general: Founder of the New Symphony Orchestra (1932), first Director of the symphony orchestra of the Hellenic Radio Orchestra in the year of its foundation (1938) and Director of the Music Service of the Hellenic Radio Foundation (1954-1959), He was a member of the founding team of the National Opera, with which he collaborated as chief musician for 32 years (1940-1972) and was the initiator and founder of the Third Programme of the Greek Radio, together with the writer Dionysis Romas (1954). Strongly influenced by our Byzantine and folk traditions, as a composer he is considered one of the founders of our National School, while as a musician he contributed decisively to the dissemination and development of Greek art music. He wrote works of orchestral and vocal music, chamber music as well as music for performances of ancient drama. He was married to the harpist Xeni Burexaki.

Η Κατερίνα Ευαγγελάτου

After his death, the piano of Antiochos Evangelatos (Rud. IbachSohn, c.1880-1890) passed into the hands of his son, the director Spyros Evangelatos, who in his theatrical career collaborated with the greatest Greek composers, including Mikis Theodorakis, Yannis Markopoulos, Thanos Mikroutsikos, George Kouroupos, Nikos Kypourgos, among others. An invisible thread connects him to the festival memory, as he was “at the forefront” in the rehearsals of the performances directed by Spyros Evaggelatos with the group Amphitheatron at Epidaurus. Here works by great composers were performed for the first time, often by the composers themselves, and rhythms and melodies for ancient choruses were tried out. Today this historical relic, connected with unique musical and theatrical moments, is passed from the Evangelatos family to the Festival family, sealing a rich creative journey.