Alternative Stage Founding Donor

Major Sponsor of the Greek National Opera

The Gr Echo Brass Ensemble, a new and dynamically emerging ensemble of brass players composed of celebrated Greek musicians with international acclaim, introduces itself to the Athens audience with a unique concert at the Greek National Opera Alternative Stage in the SNFCC. On Sunday, 9 November 2025, at 19.30, the ensemble will present a diverse programme under the baton of Stathis Soulis, featuring works by renowned composers. Admission will be free for the public. The concert's programme includes pieces by Glière, Verdi, Villa-Lobos, Piazzola, Rimsky-Korsakov, Rossini, Chapí, and Handel, performed by the distinguished soloists from the GNO: Yannis Christopoulos, Dionysios Sourbis, and the exceptional emerging soprano Maria Kosovitsa.

The sound of brass instruments breathes and illuminates the space, transforming metal into voice. The singers' vocal cords and the performers' lips are vibrated by the same wind. Trumpets, trombones, horn, tuba, and percussion unite with three lyrical voices in a programme of high virtuosity and expressive tension. The detailed transcriptions - fruits of a deep knowledge of brass wind techniques - highlight the power and clarity of their sound through pieces covering a broad musical horizon. These range from Handel, the composer of grandeur and solemnity, to Verdi, who crafts drama through his heroes' passion, and from Rossini and his humorous, vibrant melodies to Rimsky-Korsakov, who depicts fairy-tale-like images, and Piazzolla, whose music becomes a confession of the soul. The GR Echo Brass Ensemble is inviting us to a concert where moments gain voice and the stage comes alive through a shared breath.

A few words about the Gr Echo Brass Ensemble

The Gr Echo Brass Ensemble was established in March 2025. It consists of eleven distinguished brass wind performers and one percussionist, all sharing the vision of highlighting and spreading the brass wind repertoire to a wide audience, both in Greece and abroad.

Marked by a powerful artistic identity and a modern understanding of music, the ensemble's mission is to deliver high-quality musical performances, develop creative partnerships, and actively participate in festivals and institutions in Greece and around the world.

With a strong, uniform, yet flexible sound, the Gr Echo Brass Ensemble aims to combine tradition with contemporary musical creation, offering a diverse repertoire that ranges from sophisticated music and film scores to Greek art music and traditional melodies.

The Gr Echo Brass Ensemble consists of Kostas Nikas, Dionysis Agalianos, Alexandros Mavropoulos, Nikos Sarris trumpets, Christos Kaloudis, Nikolas Kaloudis horn, Spyros Faroungias, Stavros Klavanidis, Giannis Kaikis, Ioannis Kokkoris trombones, Konstantinos Aslanidis tuba, and Panagiotis Ziavras, percussion.

Photo credits: Spiros Katopodis