Gourzi, Konstantia

Gourzi, Konstantia

(born in Athens/Greece, 31 March 1962)

Konstantia Gourzi’s name often appears as composer as well as conductor in the announcements of her concerts. Her portfolio of compositions includes not only operas, film music and works for music theatre and orchestra, but also numerous solo pieces and chamber music. Konstantia Gourzi’s musical work is documented in detail through radio recordings, television broadcasts and live streams. Recordings of her extensive discography were released at ECM, NEOS, NAXOS and SONY Classical.

Composer’s notes

In Vibrato 1 and Vibrato 2, the string quartet performs the identical piece, only the piano part is different. In Vibrato 1, the pianist plays the traditionally notated voice together with the string quartet. In Vibrato 2, he has the free choice when and how often he plays his part. These melodic sections can be performed according to the pianist’s sentiment. The soloist acts independently from the string quartet’s tempo, creates his own soundscape and follows it through. It is also possible that he is still playing even if the quartet has ended their part.

The voices of the string quartet are played in 5/4 time throughout the piece and create an ostinato sound that develops until it disappears as an unisono sound. The 5/4 time helps the musicians to keep up the energy without following the usual 4/4 time accentuation.

It is helpful to play another solo piano piece between the performance of Vibrato 1 and Vibrato 2 in order to hear the difference between them. Solitary performances of both pieces would also be possible.

Konstantia Gourzi – A biographical essay > READ

Read more atthe website >  konstantiagourzi.com