13th European Dance Festival

A Critical Review by Nathalie Kyrou

I am not a professional dancer, but now I wish I was. This is the kind of effect that the European Dance Festival, held for the last two years at the Rialto Theatre in Limassol, Cyprus, has on its audience. It makes you want to leap and soar, inspiring that part of you where creativity and talent - and the innate need to move - are buried. 

Greece opened the festival with its courageous portrayal of man, a creature who is both dream and nightmare, in a piece called ‘Unknown Negative Activity’. The Rootless Root Company, a choreographic duo made up of a couple, introduced the first and only child to take part in this festival, a young girl who performed alongside them in a chilling and disturbing concept. This was not just dance, but a melange of performance, voice, live instrument, music, poetry, acting, and dramatic use of lighting and props. Starting off too slow for my liking, the piece thankfully built up momentum right up until its climactic ending, when the child shockingly climbs into the swaying womb of a hanging animal hide, after having spent most of the choreography having her body pushed and pulled, thrown and caught and manipulated into a multitude of shapes and poses by the other dancers. A brave act of trust between performers, the effect on me was a feeling of discomfort, disbelief and admiration, especially for the little girl whose unbelievably rubbery body and expressionless face made something extremely difficult seem easy beyond belief. 

Another favourite of mine in the festival this year was Spain. A unique evening of two works was presented by two choreographers with distinct yet contrasting styles. The Thoomas Noone Dance Company began the night with ‘Tort’: pure abstract dance investigating the space onstage and the organisation of its group of dancers. Forming, reforming and deforming the body, the dance was accompanied by a sparse, attenuated, melodic motif. The dancers - some of the best in the festival this year - used the weight of their bodies to flow and fall from one pose into another, gravity helping them to join and separate from each other. The result: a flowing, graceful choreography which avoided the usual clichés. The second piece, ‘Chaos Quartet’, featured four dancers each taking turns to perform, while changing their clothes throughout the piece. A highly respectable and entertaining performance from an already award-winning upcoming company exemplified the great talent and potential the field of contemporary dance has to offer.  

Another country that used the idea of putting on and removing clothes was Austria, who chose to make it more of a central theme. For the first time on stage during a dance event in Cyprus I was faced with completely naked bodies. The production ‘Secret sight: Dossier’ by Dans.Kias started with two women lying on the floor in nothing but their birthday suits. The choreography started and ended at snail’s pace, and unfortunately also dragged throughout, making the most interesting part the actual putting on and taking off of the clothes - which is not to say much. Dancers walking around, folding their clothes and carrying them from one part of the stage to the other, seemed to have no point other than to offer us much needed distraction from the monotonous moves and perplexing nudity. Only a duet towards the end offered us somewhat original choreography, but the movements looked rather clumsy, uncomfortable and unconvincing. When a third male and one of the female dancers removed their clothes completely from the waist below and danced a duet displaying their bare genitals, I was shocked enough to pay attention... if only for a few moments before I glanced back at my watch wondering how many more minutes of this piece I had left to endure. 

Nudity, a recurring theme in this festival, returned once more Italy’s performance. The scene opened with a smoke-filled a stage adorned with white lace curtains. In a hazy blur we are faced with six female figures wearing black dresses and veils covering their faces. As they stomp around the stage in their black heels, repeating prayers in unison and using only the sound and rhythm of their voices and footsteps to move to, I felt myself captured by what felt more like a Sicilian melodramatic movie than a contemporary dance. The drama heightened when the widow-like dancers suddenly dropped their dresses revealing themselves to be men...  completely naked with only the material from their dresses delicately concealing their private parts! Of course, if one had paid attention to the brochure, one would already know that the dancers were men, but the real shock here was not the revelation of their sex, but rather their sexy bodies, as they lined up in a row with their backsides staring at us in nothing but skin, teasing and posing and winking at us, while accompanied by music from ‘The Full Monty’. This comedic twist turned out to be a crowd pleaser, and although the dancers returned onto stage wearing new dresses – which this time they did not remove – the piece did not ever fully return to that initial level of humour which had made it stand out from the crowd at the start. Although the artistic direction was inspired, and the performance beautifully executed throughout the night by the Zappala Dance Company’s talented dancers, I did not however feel the choreography deserved the recurring curtain calls and standing ovation it received at the end. The work seemed too long and repetitive, and even though the amazingly versatile instrument, which provided the only source of sound in the piece (apart from the dancers’ voices), was the feature – and title - of the performance, the marranzano, as it is called, should have been drastically reduced in its use, as by the end of the night I wished I had brought earplugs with me. 

A country which I believe deserved the standing ovation and enthusiasm which Italy received was Finland – one of my favourites of the festival - whose piece ‘And the Line Begins to Blur’ stood out from all the other works with its style, design, and choreography. With talented performers who did much more than just dance, the Susanna Leinonen Company impressed me with its original music and unified whole. The choreography displayed growing tensions between the individual and community, the past and the future, and I was instantly drawn into the surreal world where beauty meets the dark outlook of life. In moments, the style of dancing reminded me of Michael Jackson’s Thriller video. The superb lighting design and costumes were worthy of a horror movie film, and they complemented each other and the choreography perfectly. The result: a unified and dramatic work of art which was over much too soon, leaving me wanting more. 

Germany’s and Ghana’s collaboration in DIN A 13 tanzcompany and Dance Factory Accra’s piece, ‘Patterns Beyond Traces’, is worth a mention. Although it is the only piece I didn’t manage to see this festival, its description in the brochure sounded interesting enough with its theme of disability, displacement, tradition and myth, and the efforts of people attempting to flee the stereotypes of race. With an interesting use of props, this work was performed by 5 dancers from Ghana and was one I wish I had seen. Croatia’s ‘Trisolistice’ by Cie Marmot was on the other hand a piece I wish I had missed. From the impression I got from the audience’s swift exit the moment the lights dimmed at the end of the performance, it was not only me who would have preferred that the work had been cut down to simply the presentation of the video part featuring the three individual female dancers, rather than having put us through their extremely dire live solo performances.  

Switzerland’s entry was far more interesting, even though it again seemed a little stretched, with its use of props such as rabbit hand-puppets, miniature soft toy horses, and long poles. ‘Black Swan’ featured four skilled dancers, from the company Ci Gilles Jobin, who demonstrated their mastery of the props in complex moves in this thematic piece of dance which integrated childhood games and disorientation. Cypriot entries by Amfidromo (‘Bla, bla, bla, Black out’), pelma.liaharaki (‘Giraffe’), and Aelion Dance Co. (‘Paul Kee’), took place in Nicosia at this festival proving why, with their respectively atmospheric, comedic, and beautiful aspects, they were the local favourites from their performances earlier in the year at the Contemporary Dance Platform in Limassol. The European Dance Festival ended with Portugal performing in Nicosia, in a piece by Paulo Ribeiro called ‘Maiorca’. Accompanied by a live pianist playing the popular and enchanting Preludes by Chopin, the six dancers balanced and climbed and jumped around their self-constructed playground of wooden boards, making it one of the more interesting pieces in terms of prop-use, although it felt slow and monotonous in parts. A piece that was clever, original, and playful, as well as nicely executed, unfortunately seemed disjointed from its classical score, and would have worked better in half the length. 

The (dance) Oscar of the festival in my opinion should go to France’s work ‘Douar’, performed by nine Algerian / French male dancers – including their choreographer Kader Attou . A collaboration between Attou and the National Choreographic Centre of La Rochelle and Cie Accororap, this work blew me away with its graceful blend of young Algerian hiphop, break-dancing, belly dancing, and exotic dancing (amongst some other styles of dancing that may not yet have definition e.g. puppet-dancing comes to mind). My jaw dropped open in astonishment and awe for most of the night - not just at the performers’ skills but also by the smooth and clever way Attou’s choreography and artistic direction masterfully merged different styles and music together into one entertaining and satisfying whole. By far the funnest of Limassol’s run of performances, this piece succeeded in drawing the audience in with the likeability of its characters and its original use of props. The acrobatics, theatrical aspect and soundtrack made me want to get up and join in all the fun. Squeals of delight and laughter from the audience emerged throughout the piece, as the dancers bodies flowed and contorted into unheard of shapes and forms. The highlight for me was surprisingly not the tricks such as the bouncing around upside down on one arm, or the back flips or the spinning break-dancing, or even the double jointed belly dancer (!), but simply the man who stood alone in the middle of the stage under a spotlight and moved his body in tiny speedy mechanical bursts which gave the effect of a human looking robot under strobe lighting – not unlike some sort of creature designed by special CGI effects! By the end of the night, each and every dancer had been allowed his 15 minutes of fame to show off his individual talents, yet the group showed that they could also perform well together in harmonious unison. They epitomized the essential trust that has to exist between dancers in such routines, persuading me by the end of the night that these men were not just partners in a dance company, but possibly friends, and maybe even family ( the kind of relatives I would want to visit me at celebrations!). The audience seemed to agree, as they raised their hands in the air with tremendous applause at the end of the night, which prompted an encore from the happy and grateful dancers. 

This festival may not be a competitive event – and rightly so, for all art is indeed a matter of taste – but if it were one, although there were definitely some stars, and some disappointments, I would put my hands together again for Finland, Greece and Spain, but France would ultimately win... hands down. Or rather, hands up, in the air!

Copyright 2010 Nathalie Kyrou

LIVING - Confessions of a Recovering Facebook Addict...

“The site that took the world by storm” by Nathalie Kyrou

It has infected millions of people worldwide, spreading uncontrollably through nations faster than the latest pop hit, lasting longer than any seasonal fad. It has the power to bring people together, but also to threaten or destroy. To most of those who have experienced it, life has changed completely and will never be the same again. No, it is not a disease – it’s Facebook.

Facebook (FB) is not just a website; you could consider it a marriage of sorts, because once you’ve signed up, you are indeed committing yourself to a serious long-term relationship. Like wedlock, once you’ve joined, you are offering yourself up for better or worse. FB, like matrimony, can reunite long-lost lovers and bring people from all sorts of backgrounds and places together. Just like a wedding, it is a celebration of friends and family, a place where they can all get together to communicate.

FB is one of the fastest-growing and best-known sites on the internet today: a giant, virtual system of networking, with over 200 million active members today. This unique, cyber universe was launched in 2004 by Harvard sophomore Mark Zuckerberg, initially set up to cater exclusively to Harvard students. It was a huge hit within weeks, and soon all high school and college students were demanding access. Zuckerberg immediately recruited his friends to help build FB as we know it, and within four months, the site added 30 more college networks. Finally in September 2006, FB opened to anyone with an email address, taking the world by storm.

For those of you have not yet submitted yourselves to this ever-consuming site (if you exist), here is a brief summary of what it entails. Like other social networks, the site allows its users to create a profile page and forge online links with friends and acquaintances. You acquire friends by searching for, then adding them. Joining a network allows you to see what is going on in that location or group, and if you wish you can post up your status at any time to inform your friends of what you are up to. There is even a mini feed which automatically posts up the details of your activities. You can join groups of interest where you can mix and mingle with other non-friends, and you can also use FB to post up your own notes, posts, links and events. You also have the option to select a myriad of applications to add to your profile, each of which offers something different. And if you really want to waste time, Mob Wars seems to be a game played through FB which will do the trick (but that is where I draw the line). Finally, there is even a chat engine on the site which allows you to communicate live with other online users.

When I heard about FB for the first time, I had only just signed up with MySpace, and I was still a cyberspace novice trying to get the hang of the whole concept of presenting myself, all summed up neatly, on one page on the internet. After endless hours of trying to get my page personalised, I simply couldn’t face joining another site and going through it all over again. So, I resisted joining the online masses on FB. When I moved country, however, I finally – upon a lot of friends’ pleas – decided perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to give it a closer look. I was pleasantly surprised to find FB much simpler and more user friendly than MySpace. Because it did finally seem like a good way to stay in touch with my friends abroad, I gave in and joined. I never expected to get so hooked, so fast.

I am not the only one who found FB addictive. Laura, 21, from the U.K. who is currently working and living in Cyprus agrees. “I can’t get enough of it,” she tells me. “I use it to stay in touch with my friends back home, and to catch up with everyone else. It rules!” Riyaz, 29, who hails from Perth Australia but grew up in Cyprus, joined FB last year and is still an active member. “FB has stepped up the 'game' from its rival competitors, and has allowed me to communicate with so many people that I never expected to find again. It is also a great way to liaise with many of my close mates for going out, and I love the sharing of photos!” Nick, 34, from Nicosia, is also a FB fan. “I use it as a second email,” he says. In fact, many other people I spoke to over the summer on the island, admitted to checking their FB wall posts and messages even more often than their regular email accounts.

With people buying Blackberries and iphones like there is no tomorrow, and with wireless internet available these days for free from most coffee shops and venues, access to FB online is extremely easy. People that access it on their mobile devices are almost 50% more active on FB than non-mobile users. Needless to say, as a result, things can get borderline ridiculous at times with people checking what others are doing every second of the day, and changing their status with every action they take or place they go. In fact, more than 20 million users update their statuses at least once each day! It is an understatement to say that there is little privacy left. But is this such a bad thing, if people are aware of it and yet still choose to be part of it?

There has been enough hype about FB so far that people in general must surely be aware of its potential threat as an invasion of privacy. I myself have concerns about this issue, and have therefore added all sorts of limited restrictions to my profile, allowing only close friends full privileges. In case you are not aware, this kind of flexibility is available, as well as many other privacy options – all it takes is some patience to figure it all out. I am not one of those people who believe that FB is an undercover conspiracy by the FBI to gather info about the world’s population and compile an international database which will be used to our detriment, but I nevertheless have opted not to have my surname, date of birth or my phone number listed! And usually when I post up photos, I make sure not to tick the box that allows everyone to see the album...only friends (and sometimes, only certain friends). Putting people on ‘limited’ profile might be considered a form of discrimination, but it is a small price to pay for security and peace of mind.

In general, if you are on FB with good intentions, and you take care, you should be safe enough. Nevertheless, with something so phenomenally popular, it is natural that there would be some FB related crimes. Fraud experts say that the willingness of the younger generation to disclose personal data over the internet is a worrying trend. With millions of members allowing strangers access to their information, they are making themselves vulnerable to identity theft, giving cybercriminals all they need to create spoof identities, gain access to online accounts or infiltrate employers’ computer networks. On the other hand, the site itself can help stop crime too. For example, back in September 2007, using a FB profile, police arrested a suspect in an attack on the Georgetown University campus.

Although there are many ways to personalise and adapt FB to your liking, I was surprised by the number of people I’ve met who are still deterred by the whole experience. Jennifer, 29, from Limassol, has resisted joining so far. She is a little paranoid about the whole thing, but also feels a little left out because she is not in the system. “I think that I probably would get hooked on it if I joined, but as I have limited time due to my career, so I just cannot afford to take the chance of wasting my time on it.” Caroline, 32, a Lebanese living on the island, is currently considering canceling her membership with the site. “There is no more privacy left. If I don’t post up photos, someone else will, and I don’t like that. I also don’t go on the site as often as I did when I first joined last year.” Nita, 34, from Larnaca, found the whole FB experience so tiresome that she actually not only decided to officially leave FB, but also set up a group online, asking other like-minded people to join, so they can all leave FB at the same time – a sort of mass exodus. Angela, 31 is a lawyer who works in Nicosia, who has never been tempted to join. “I am quite a private person, so the idea of laying my life out there for everyone to see is not appealing. Nonetheless, the drawback of not being a member is that you miss being in the loop and knowing what’s going on in the social circuit.”
It seems that there is definitely a distinction between FB-lovers and FB-haters. FB virgins have no idea what they are missing or what they’d be getting themselves into if they joined, while current users cannot understand how one can live without it. Many others have a love-hate relationship with the site, but just cannot give it up.

For those who use it as a networking site, or to organise social events or catch up with friends and share photos, it can be a fun and useful online tool. But, if you overdo it within the first few weeks of joining, or expect too much from it (online dating comes to mind), or conversely, if you’re not curious enough and never make the effort to investigate what the site can offer, then you may just get bored sooner or later. On the other hand, the ‘collection’ of friends can end up being, for some, a little obsessive, and your addiction can grow. It is, after all, for many, one huge popularity contest. This one guy I know has over a thousand friends (is it even possible to know so many people?), and on the other extreme, I have discovered people who have less than twenty (perhaps they just joined out of curiosity, or maybe they are simply being realistic). Nevertheless, the average user has 120 friends on the site (source: facebook – press room statistics).

No matter how many friends one has, however, FB users’ passion - or addiction - to the site is unparalleled. More than 3.5 billion minutes are spent on Facebook each day (worldwide). FB currently ranks 4th on the top site listed on Alexa.com and has also taken the lead in the top photo sharing market worldwide, even above Flickr. It continues to grow in popularity internationally, making major headlines across the world. Its growth in 2007 was staggering: over 1 million new users signed up every week – that is 200,000 daily, with the site receiving 40 billion page views a month! FB is not limited to youth either; long gone are the days of using it as a social network for college students. The fastest growing demographic now is those aged 35 years old and older.

Cypriots, nationwide, have recently caught on and are now joining the rest of the world in this FB frenzy. It’s not hard to get hooked - no matter where you hail from, nor what language you speak - as FB is a simple enough idea: basically your face on a page. With each page belonging to a different friend, the site is like an endless book, which can be read and re-read. It is the overall simplicity of it all, as well as the fact that FB has distinguished itself from rivals like the larger MySpace by imposing a spartan design ethos and limiting how users can change the appearance of their profile pages, that makes FB so easy to remember, as well as user-friendly for all races and ages.

With all this hype surrounding it, could it be that FB has already reached its peak and that people will soon move on to something new? FB creators already thought of this, when they introduced the ‘New Facebook’, but perhaps an even newer version is just round the corner. And now, with onsite advertising, FB is being used as a marketing tool more often. In fact, it was reported that MI6, the U.K’s Secret Intelligence Service, was using the social networking site to recruit the next generation of spies! Also, there was a mention last year of plans for FB, the movie. And if you ever go out, you would know that the most common chat-up line still remains: “Are you on FB?”

So, has FB had its day? Eh...I’ll let you know in a minute – I just have to update my status.

Nathalie Kyrou © 2009. All rights reserved to the author.

FOOD UNCOVERED - The Power of Festive Food

The Power of Festive Food

With Christmas having just visited us, and the New Year on our doorstep, there is no better time than now for discovering and enjoying traditional Cypriot festive food. Almost every country has at least one special food that is eaten on New Year’s Eve, or in the first days after, that is supposed to bring luck, wealth or success in the coming year. The Cypriots follow the Greek tradition of eating “Vasilopitta” (a cake baked with a coin inside).

The story behind this is that the cake originated from the famously high taxes that the Ottoman Empire imposed on the Greek people during their long reign. It is believed that a Bishop of Greece, through some miracle, managed to recover a large portion of the Greek people's riches from the Ottoman's grasp. When he attempted to return the riches to their respective owners, however, fighting amongst the Greeks broke out! Saint Basil (the English name for Vassilis) asked the women to bake a large cake with the valuables inside – this way, when he sliced the cake, the valuables miraculously found their way back to their rightful owners!

Today, a cake is baked in honor of this miracle with one coin hidden inside it. Traditionally cut by the head of the family on New Year's Day, one slice of the cake is supposed to be for Jesus Christ, one for the house and one for absent family members. The person who bites into the piece of cake with the coin in it will be blessed with good luck for the coming year. Did you know that the Cypriot Santa is not Saint Nicholas, as the English know it, but Ayios (Saint) Vassilis? In Cyprus, Father Christmas visits people on New Years Day instead of Christmas Day, therefore it is tradition that presents are given and received on this day, which is also Ayios Vassilis’ Day.

One of the main concerns for the Greek Cypriot household is preparing bread for important religious and festive occasions. Throughout history, housewives used their skill and imagination to make different types of bread, baking each one with a symbolic meaning incorporated into it. The various perceptions, myths, prejudices and superstitions of their faith ended up in their breads, often to call good spirits and send evil ones away.

This Cypriot belief in evil spirits is also associated with the celebration of Epiphany on the 6th January, aka the “Feast of Light” (called “ta Phota” in Greek). It is on this day Christ was baptised in the River Jordan, symbolising the spiritual rebirth of man. On the eve of Epiphany, known as “kalanda”, people fast and then gather in church for the blessing of the waters, which are supposed to have held evil spirits for the past twelve days. After Mass, the priest visits all houses to cleanse them from the spirits or demons (known as “kalikandjiari”, they appear on Christmas Day and play evil tricks on people afterwards). On Epiphany Day, a celebration takes place at all seaside towns, where the Archbishop leads a procession down to the sea where a ceremonial baptism is performed. During the ceremony the leading priest throws the holy cross into the sea, and young men dive into the water to retrieve the cross, and return it to him. Now that is enough to work up a hunger!

For most Greek Cypriots faith plays an important role in their lives. The Greek Orthodox faith observes several fasts during the year, which means abstinence from foods derived from animals containing red blood, from dairy products, and at times even from olive oil, and wine. Foods that are allowed to be consumed during fast periods are called “nistisima”. With the Christmas Fast, which lasted from November 15th to December 24th, recently over, and the Great Lent Fast, which begins seven weeks before Easter, looming up ahead, now is the time to indulge in all those delicious Cypriot delicacies!

Why not dig in to leftover “christopsoma” (Christmas bread), “gennopittes”, Christmas “paximadia”, and “koulouria” (seasonal cookies), all of which are made across the island in various shapes and names according to local village tradition. In fact “koulouria” can be made in various forms: “vortakouthkia” meaning frogs, (which expresses the wish for rain to help farmers), “athropouthkia” which means little people (the Greek Cypriot tradition links them to dead peoples’ souls), and “zembilouthkia”, meaning baskets (an expression of the wish for the blessing of crops). In some villages, the “stavrokouloura” (koulouria in the shape of the cross) are hung on the walls during religious occasions. They form part of the festive decoration as well as a protecting force, as since ancient times, Greeks believed that wheat and wheat-related products would protect people from evil. Now there’s a great reason to get baking!

Nathalie Kyrou © 2009. All rights reserved to the author.

LIVING - Road Rage

Road Rage by Nathalie Kyrou

Only the other day, I witnessed an incident in the parking lot of a Limassol superstore which left me stupefied. Two adult men, rolling around on the floor of the car park, throwing punches, and all this over who gets the parking space! I thought I may have been hallucinating, (this kind of nonsensical violence doesn’t really happen in Cyprus, does it?), until I heard that a friend of mine had witnessed another shameful display of aggression on the Limassol-Nicosia highway. Apparently, there was a car pulled over on the side of the highway, and one man was dragging another man out of the car, in an obvious and asinine attempt at bloodshed. As if that were not enough, my sister just told me that she recently saw a woman in the passenger’s seat of a car, slapping a man’s face (as if that weren’t bad enough), while he was driving! Absurd!

It seems that road rage in Cyprus is in full swing. You have to be very careful these days who you make eye contact with, let alone who you hoot your horn at, because you never know what kind of deranged person you’re dealing with. Now this wouldn’t be a problem if everyone knew how to drive (and park) on this island, but unfortunately, that is not the case. Nevertheless, take heed: practice a little temperance if you want to arrive alive.

It’s true that you need to have the patience of a snail with the eye span of an eagle to drive in this country. The minute you’re not concentrating, somebody is sure to cut you off, without signaling (has anyone in this country ever heard of indicating?) If you don’t happen to have eyes on the sides of your head, you may end up needing a new car.

And hello, does anyone get the concept of ‘fast’ and ‘slow’ lanes? Roads are designed with two lanes for a reason: it’s called overtaking…so please take your side already! I have had to weave my way down roads, sometimes putting my own safety at risk, all because people simply don’t understand that when they are in the right lane going way under the speed limit, the proper thing to do when a car is right behind them is to either pick up speed, or move to the left. I definitely don’t expect them to ignore me, after I have flashed my headlights at them. What’s worse is when you move to the left and overtake them from there, they follow you and stick to your behind, blinding you with their headlights in a malicious attempt to piss you off! (Seriously, it’s enough to get anyone mad, isn’t it?) If you’re guilty of having behaved with such hostility towards another driver, then maybe instead of renewing your membership to C.A.A next year, you should consider joining A.A.A (Automobile Aggression Association).

I’ve noticed the papers have been filled lately with letters complaining about the driving in Cyprus. People are aware of this problem, it seems, but rather than do something about it, they moan about it or laugh, but finally, accept the way things are. Sure the police are cracking down on illegal road acts more and more, but the truth is, although speeding tickets are being given out like there’s no tomorrow, so are driving licenses. And people just don’t follow the rules, no matter what the consequences. Cyprus has experienced some of the highest international rates of road accident fatalities for decades, and yet it still goes on. We need to put a brake on this now.

Nonetheless, this is not just another article about how careless and reckless drivers in Cyprus are…we already know this. The point I wish to make is that we should exercise the right balance of restraint on the road, by not indulging in displays of anger, violence and revenge, and by showing some courtesy to our fellow drivers. It’s not a matter of driving slower or faster; it all comes down to driving - and behaving - better. Be aware that there are others on the road as well as you, drive politely, and pay attention. Put down that mobile phone, stop eating, brushing your hair, smoking, trying to park on a double-yellow line or pavement, racing another driver through a red light, yelling at your passenger, checking out the person in the Mercedes in the lane next to you, or beating someone up, and for goodness sake… just drive!

Nathalie Kyrou © 2009. All rights reserved to the author.

MUSIC - Listen and Harmonize...Review and Interview

Listen and Harmonize by Nathalie Kyrou

Plato said “Philosophy is the highest music”, Beethoven said “Music is a higher revelation that all wisdom and philosophy”. Could music be the highest philosophy? Experiencing the Cyprus’ International Music Festival and an interview with one of the artists opens the doors to musical enlightenment.

In the magnificent setting of the ancient Kourion theatre, the annual International Music Festival celebrated its first year of “beauty through music and landscape” this summer. Founders and organizers, Teresa Dello Monaco and Paolo Cremona, did a tremendous job of selecting world renown musicians, and combining various musical styles (the festival is open to classical, jazz, traditional and avant-garde music) with a setting that evokes deep-felt emotion. Comprising of three evening concert performances, the festival, this year, hosted Daniel Levy who offered us a fresh, new perspective of classical works; the Jacques Loussier Trio who enthralled us with never-heard before alchemies of jazz and classical melodies; and the gypsy jazz energy of the fun and young Zaiti ensemble.

Fade in. An open-air amphitheatre, perched on a cliff-top amongst ancient ruins, set against a backdrop of the Mediterranean Sea. The night sky is dark and sprinkled with glittering stars. In the distance lies a faint outline of the horizon. The wind whispers through the air while waves can be heard crashing upon the shore below. A crowd gathers on the stone seats of this intimate venue. There is a buzz of excitement in the air. Daniel Levy is about to perform on the black polished Steinway lying alone in the middle of the stage.

Levy caresses the keys softly before his slow commencement of Brahms. The music softly creeps up on you, without the need for amplifiers, as his fingers scurry over the ivory bars. When he pauses, the vast silence of the venue engulfs you. Levy’s expression matches the music’s vivid character. He makes what is difficult to perform, look easy, delivering piece after piece with clarity and concentrated melody. He teases us gently with his pianissimo, amazing us with his accuracy. Every single note is played with extreme care and attention to detail.

Mesmerizing us with his Chopin performance, Levy captivates his listeners with his skillful rendition of the Barcarolle. The second half of the recital contains more recognizable music from Chopin and Schumann - works with a more romantic feel to them – a perfect complement to the enchanting surroundings. During Liszt, Levy’s left digits rumble over the keys like rolling thunder, his right fingertips like raindrops tinkling on glass. Keeping us on our toes with changes of tempo, he delivers a memorable ending to the piece, then entrances us with his encore, an improvisation surprisingly played solely with his left hand. The finale is a dramatic display of musical flair as Levy ends the performance like a storyteller finishing a tale with gusto.

Not only a master of music on stage, but also a kind, intelligent and interesting man, the renown Daniel Levy inspired me during our interview:

You have said that “Music is a language”. Can you elaborate?

Not only is music a language, but language itself comes from music. In India, grammarians are musicians - they understand grammar from their love of music. The origins of words are often derived from music. Take the word "accordo" in Italian, rooted in music and adapted into everyday language. Same with the word "sympathy" –often the tone of one's voice is described as being sympathetic. How about “strings”? Have you ever heard of the expression: "pulling/tugging at one’s heart-strings" to denote emotion? This epitomizes the link between music, language and feelings. Even the word “heart” is very close to the word “heard”. When you say you learn things "by heart", you mean that you hear it, and then remember it... once again to do with sounds and listening.

Music is literature without words. The ballad represents a poem, the ‘novellette’ is a short novel in small parts. The composer doesn't tell you what the story is (in words), but you can hear the 'voices' in the music. Actually, the great composers were inspired by novels. Liszt's ‘Vallée d’Obermann’ is a great example of this – the music was inspired by a book of the same title, which tells the story of a man (Obermann) who went to Switzerland to a valley (not an actual place but more of a philosophical state) to find himself.

You chose to record Schumann’s works and perform him at the festival this year? What do you find so unique and inspiring about his music?

Schumann was a sympathetic man, which is why so many listeners were affected by his music. There was a sense of singing and poetry in his works, and he was inspired by children and nostalgia, all of which give his music a sense of freedom, intuition, and purity, which attracts me. His compositions may not appear to be difficult to play but they are in fact more complicated than other "acrobatics" on stage, which seem to have more music packed into a piece. With Schumann there is so much yet to discover. In 2010 it will be his 200th anniversary - celebrated by musicians all across the world. My aim is to bring some of his less popular works to light. There is no motivation to do this amongst managers of music - it is always the same pieces which are performed and recorded, and yet he has so many other compositions. Using a celebration as a reason to discover more of his work is a great way to get to know him better.

How about Chopin?

The thing about Chopin is that the pieces that are usually performed are usually “spectacular” and seem difficult to play. The Barcarolle is a little different as it seems easier and yet it’s not. I believe it’s harder to play a very good pianissimo than a forte. Also velocity is not the most important indication of difficulty either. Something andante and without noise is more challenging to impress people with. It's like being naked on a stage.


How do you see live performances evolving in the modern world?

The 'concert' as we know it is quite recent. Piano recitals were the continuity of poetry, begun by Liszt. In fact in the 19th century, it was not uncommon to have 4 hour long performances with singers, sonatas and orchestras - it was not until the end of that century when the focus was shifted to one artist for each recital. These days, music has become a pause, an interval. It is hard to capture all that the composer was trying to say in just a couple of hours. Although I do believe that is it not only about how long the piece is, but how intense it is for both the audience and the performers, we cannot deeply appreciate what is happening, when we don't have enough time.

I believe in the influence of music on human beings: in taking time out, in making a choice to listen. Music is a mirror of time - it is impossible to shorten the time it takes to listen to a sonata - it takes as long as it takes. You just cannot squish the story. What’s also important is that music must sound, even if it is an old composition, as though it were something that is happening - and relevant - now. Each time you hear it, it could be interpreted differently.

How does recording in studio compare with live concerts?

Sometimes a truly well executed recording of a piece can give you a different yet equally satisfying experience of the music compared to a live performance. There is something to be said about listening alone versus listening with people. With live concerts, sometimes because of technicalities or conditions not being right, they may not turn out as perfect as is desired. I love playing with an orchestra, as well as doing solos, but actually working with the ensemble rather than just showing up on the concert night and playing without rehearsing with them beforehand. When it comes to the audience, I can tell during the performance if they are "willing to listen". There is a different between hearing and listening.

Is this part of what you have written about in your novels, as well as what you are trying to teach in your newly founded Academy of Euphony?

Yes. We think that we listen very well, simply because we have ears, but that's not true. We learn to talk, write, and read at school, but how about just listening? The great composers all had so many things in common: they were all deep listeners, completely aware of the music, of its role, and what it can evoke in you. When you first study the composers it seems that they were simply romantic and poetic, when in fact they were simply aware that one can transcend themselves with music.
You cannot discover such things in a regular academy, which is why I have founded the Academy of Euphony, a place to share, accessible to all. We are all musical instruments in an orchestra - each of us with a different pitch. We can all offer something to one another, no matter what our background is - as long as we feel the necessity. It would be a borderless form of teaching, with no divisions, where each person can take or give as they wish, educating themselves in the process. The challenge is to: i) Experience sound, ii) Listen, and iii) Go beyond. The idea is to explore harmony, as the body itself is a harmonic human unity… a true musical chord.
Pythagoras originated the idea of the enlightening and healing power of sounds and music thousands of years ago, however you seem to be the pioneer in bringing the idea of Euphony as a state of consciousness to the attention of modern society. Why now, and how will you succeed when so many others have failed?

So many people in time have tried to do this, but silently, without listening. Music was not essential before... but it is the right moment now. It seems that there is greatest necessity to address this issue now that there is so much ‘noise’ in the world. Recognizing that this sort of education could be essential to each one of us is a natural reaction to this. The Dalai Lama said: “In a moment of so much communication, and yet no communication...there are so many windows, but nothing in the room”.

One doesn’t have to be a musician in the professional sense - we are all musicians in the essential way…we have music within us. We are all able to appreciate it; something resonates inside us when we hear music, even if we don't understand it completely, and that is a marvelous experience. We are the musical instruments, we are sound… I mean we use sound in our voices, when we speak and in song. Have you ever thought: why and how is it possible that we can produce certain sounds like this so naturally? Maybe we need to have more responsibility about this power. We must swim against the current. The fear of finding ourselves, leads us only to become less human.

You have definitely been a great mentor to others. Do you prefer teaching or performing?

They are so different that you cannot compare – it’s like "a different frequency" altogether. Having one without the other would not be good. Sharing is important – it is essential to hear what others have to say. Just playing would be like being of touch with reality; you wouldn't have a clue what people are searching for in music, what they need. If we don't listen to people first, why should we listen to music?

As the performance ends, the last notes of music drift up the theatre and dissolve into the atmosphere. The roaring crowds explode into applause. Smiles adorn the faces of musicians, as laughter rumbles amongst the delighted audience. The lights dim and the people climb up the rocky steps, empting the amphitheatre. There is an overall sense of satisfaction intermingled with a touch of sadness, as it will be a whole year before the ancient grounds of Kourion host the International Music Festival again. Fade out.

Nathalie Kyrou © 2008. All rights reserved to the author.