MUSIC
Tora Collective
Following up his acclaimed recent outings Rooftop Stories and Irrationalities, bassist and composer Petros Klampanis creates one of his most inventive musical settings to date with Tora Collective, his sixth album as a leader. For Klampanis, who grew up in Athens, Greece surrounded by the confluence of Mediterranean and Balkan folk cultures, making music has always meant navigating cultural crossroads. With Tora Collective (“Tora”=“Now”) he puts traditional Greek music at the centre, even as he presents it from a bold new angle. In addition to the two new originals “Disoriented” and “South By Southeast,” Klampanis and his compact hybrid jazz/Greek folk ensemble interpret popular Greek songs such as “Xehorísmata,” “Sibethéra,” “Harikláki” and “Menexédes Kai Zoumboúlia.” These songs, Klampanis asserts, are “not just part of Greek cultural heritage or a fragment of the past, but also as part of the future: they live into the present, breathe into the ‘here and now,’ while constantly evolving in a dynamic state and in dialogue with contemporary music.”
Areti Ketime – voice
Thomas Meleteas – oud
Petros Klampanis – bass
“The bringing together of Grecian and other international folk and jazz talents succeeds with aplomb, thanks to the sensitive craftsmanship of all the artists and their informed authenticity as they treat these traditional songs with just the right balance of respect and innovation” – Downbeat, USA
“On Tora Collective, he offers poised, yet heartfelt music characterized by seriousness of purpose and a dignified austerity that would not be out of place in a Euripidean tragedy” – All About Jazz, USA
“EmotIonally rich, nuanced, and transparent” – BR Klassik, DE
“Klampanis artfully blends melodies and themes from Greek folklore with contemporary jazz, executing them with a flawless blend of precision and harmony” – JAZZTHETIK, DE
ART EXHIBITION
Martin Stommel – A Giddy Thing
I am very pleased to show some of my work here with FRAMED. As I have also been exhibiting in Berlin for several years, I have selected pictures here that have not yet been shown – although they are close to my heart. I would like to make a statement about what I do: I believe that art has its own dynamic, it makes its way through the soul, just like a spring runs through cracks and over stones, without us being able to explain its course by mere observation. What is certainly formative for my own works is that they are created both directly from nature and without a concrete model. Then there is the fact that they are often already determined by sketches and preparatory work at the time of execution. The advantage I feel is not the possibility of facilitating the process through intensive underpainting; I only have very rough approaches to underpainting. Rather, the preparations leave me largely untroubled by considerations. So the execution of the picture is entirely devoted to the language that only painting knows. It is also this language that provides further, deeper information.
– Martin
