More concerts coming to The Shoe Factory

Right before April concludes, four more musicians are taking the stage of The Shoe Factory in old Nicosia featuring unique guitar sounds and Argentinian melodies. Coming up first on April 29 is a recital with renowned Cypriot baritone Kyros Patsalides and talented Cypriot guitarist Vasilios Avraam.

“The partnership of a singer with a guitarist in recital is in itself a unique event that is rarely encountered in our times,” say organisers Pharos Arts Foundation. Adding to the event’s distinctive elements is the fact that the recital is organised by the 16th International Guitar Festival EGTA – Cyprus, in collaboration with the Pharos Arts Foundation, and it is supported by the Embassy of Austria.

Patsalides is one of the most important Cypriot artists of his generation, with an acclaimed international career. He first came into the limelight in 1995, when he won the First Prize in the International Song Competition of the Arena di Verona in co-production with the State Opera of Budapest. Since then he has been honoured by various organisations for his contribution to musical life in Cyprus, representing Cyprus in concerts organised for the island’s accession to the EU.

Avraam has appeared with a number of orchestras and ensembles around Europe, including the Cyprus Symphony Orchestra. His career has included both performance and teaching aspects and since 2020 he is a professor of guitar at the University of Nicosia. At the same time, he performs with the Cyprus Guitar Trio and the Trypticho Ensemble which he founded.

The programme the two musicians will present is centred around songs composed by Franz Schubert and WA Mozart, which have been adapted for voice and guitar by the 19th-century guitarist Napoléon Coste and the legendary 20th-century Austrian guitarist Karl Scheit.

On the following evening, the Bandini-Chiacchiaretta Duo will travel to Cyprus again as part of the 16th International Guitar Festival EGTA – Cyprus. The duo is dedicated to the promotion of Argentinean music through the charm and magic of its two most representative instruments, the guitar and the bandoneon. Giampaolo Bandini on the guitar and Cesare Chiacchiaretta on the bandoneon will present a concert featuring the works of Argentinian composer Astor Piazzolla.

On the international concert circuit, the duo has become an important point of reference thanks to the two musicians’ great rapport and extraordinary charisma. They have appeared in some of the most notable festivals and important venues throughout the world, toured more than 50 countries and now reach our island to perform nine of Piazzolla’s compositions.

Kyros Patsalides and Vasilios Avraam

Recital with guitarist and baritone. Part of the 16th International Guitar Festival EGTA – Cyprus April 29. The Shoe Factory, Nicosia. 8.30pm. €15, 20. Tel: 22-663871

Bandini-Chiacchiaretta Duo

Giampaolo Bandini and Cesare Chiacchiarett perform live. Part of the 16th International Guitar Festival EGTA – Cyprus April 30. The Shoe Factory, Nicosia. 8.30pm. €15, 20. Tel: 22-663871