POLIS Ensemble
The POLIS Ensemble was founded in Athens in December 2011. The word “polis” evokes the cities of the Eastern Mediterranean, whose musical traditions have never ceased to inspire the members of the ensemble. From the first months of 2012 to the present day, the ensemble has performed in major concert halls and venues, presented its work on Greek radio and television, and participated in the EBU’s Folk Music Spring and Easter Project 2021. The sextet has collaborated, both on recordings and on stage, with distinguished composers, soloists, singers and actors, as well as with the ERT Contemporary Music Orchestra and various choral ensembles. It has participated in numerous Greek festivals and has travelled to Brussels at the invitation of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Belgium and the European Parliament. In 2021, the ensemble participated in the multifaceted programme of events entitled “200 Years of Greek Folk Song”, under the overall artistic direction of the internationally renowned composer and conductor Stavros Xarchakos. In 2017, the ensemble released its first album, featuring original compositions and atmospheric improvisations by its members. In December 2021, it released the book-CD Ichos Ellinikos (“Greek Sound”), a tribute to fourteen classical composers of Greek origin, spanning from the 13th century to the present day. In 2026, the sextet releases its second album, featuring original instrumental compositions.
The POLIS Ensemble consists of:
Stefanos Dοrbarakis (kanun, vocals), Alexandros Kapsokavadis (politiko laouto, vocals), Manousos Klapakis (percussion), Giorgos Kontogiannis (cretan lyra), Theodoros Kouelis (double bass) and Nikos Paraoulakis (ney).
Notio Toxo / Aegean Arc
A musical tour through a "tumultuous" zone based on Greek traditional music. The group's repertoire includes traditional songs -original and/or arranged- from the regions of the Hellenic Arc. The Hellenic Arc or Aegean Arc is a region with common linguistic and musical characteristics, stretching from Cyprus to Southern Italy, passing through the southern coasts of Asia Minor, the Dodecanese, Crete, the Southern Peloponnese and the Cyclades. The medieval voices of Cyprus, the tabachaniotika of Crete, and the Sephardic songs of Rhodes blend with the "hammock song" of Naxos, a night patinada from the Peloponnese and the Greek songs of Southern Italy in a program of artistic excellence and high aesthetics.
The Aegean Arc consists of:
Katerina Papadopoulou (programme director, singing), Stefanos Dorbarakis (kanun, vocals), Kyriakos Tapakis (oud, spanish lute/laúd) & Giorgos Kontogiannis (cretan lyra, percussion).
Anastatica Project
"Anastatica" is the rose of resurrection. It is the miraculous flourishing of the apparently dead. The wanderings of the life-bringing womb until the moment of birth and the continuation of life. The journey of the Anastatica Project is a melodic wandering from place to place and from era to era. Old Greek music, authentic, with elements of neighbouring traditions at times, which comes unadulterated over the centuries, it is received with respect and presented without barriers. Fresh sound, special, old and new at the same time, from five skilled musicians, with a mature knowledge of the subject, who come together motivated by love for this music and by the mood of a new approach. Dance as an integral element creatively intervenes in a primordial coexistence.
The Anastatica Project consists of:
Katerina Papadopoulou (voice, programme director), Stefanos Dorbarakis (kanun), Kyriakos Tapakis (oud, spanish lute/laúd), Giorgos Kontogiannis (cretan lyra), Theodoros Kouelis (double bass), Manousos Klapakis (percussion) & Charitona Charitonidis (tsampouna, bagpipes, dance).
Maria Simoglou Ensemble
The Maria Simoglou Ensemble consists of:
Maria Simoglou (voice, percussion, programme director), Stratis Psaradellis (politiki lyra), Harris Lambrakis (ney), Stefanos Dorbarakis (kanun), Periklis Papapetropoulos (politiko laouto/lavta, sazi) & Kostas Meretakis (percussion).