Dinos Constantinides

In 2005, Dinos Constantinides, conductor of the Louisiana Sinfonietta, was invited to be a guest conductor-composer at the XVI Festival Forfest of the Czech Republic in Kromeriz. He conducted the Bohuslav Martinu Chamber Orchestra of Brno in a concert of his music on June 25. He presented lectures on his music in both Kromeriz and Brno. Constantinides also served as guest composer at Georgia State University’s “Hellenic Studies Series” in October. Also in October, the orchestral work Antigone Fantasy was performed in Romania, while China II was heard in Brazil. The Nürnberger Symphoniker of Germany has scheduled eight sessions for a CD recording of Constantinides’ symphonic music in 2006; the composer will oversee the recording sessions of his works. He has been commissioned to compose two concerti for saxophone and orchestra, as well as a string quartet; he was also the recipient of an ASCAP award for 2005. During 2005, he composed the first movement of his Celestial Symphony No.6, Homage to Cyprus, Music for Cyprus, a fourth Concerto for baritone saxophone, and Concertos Nos. 2 and 3 for saxophone.

Premieres

The trio Music for Cyprus was first heard April 4, 2005, in a performance at the University of Cyprus, Nicosia. Second Saxophone Concerto was presented on April 17, by soloist Stathis Mavrommatis with the Louisiana Sinfonietta, Baton Rouge. Homage to Cyprus was premiered by the Louisiana Sinfornietta on June 2; the same organization also presented the premieres of Journey to the Stars, Celestial Symphony, and Hellenikon Idyllion on September 11. Homage to Forfest received its premiere on June 26 from the Bohuslav Martinu Chamber Orchestra, in Kromeriz, the Czech Republic.

Performances

String Quartet No.3 and Music for Bill were performed three times in Baton Rouge during April 2005. Homage to Cyprus and The Dancing Turtle were performed ten times in the East Baton Rouge Libraries during May and June. 20th Century Studies for Two Violins was heard on four occasions in Greece, with performances in Athens and Thessaloniki, June 1-4, as well as in St. Louis (MO) and Baton Rouge. The Bassoon Concerto was performed at Lakehead University in Thundes Bay, Canada, in June, and Patterns for violin and string orchestra was presented June 2 at the International Conference of Engineers McMat 2005 in Baton Rouge, LA. Saxophonist Theofilos Sotiriades performed Family Triptych for saxophone and string orchestra in Salzburg, Austria, on July 15 and 16.

Further Information

• 2003-2004 American Composers Update
• 2001-2002 American Composers Update
• 2000-2001 American Composers Update
• 1998-1999 American Composers Update
• 1997-1998 American Composers Update
• 1996-1997 American Composers Update
• SAI's Composers Bureau Online