Armonia Atenea
An orchestra set up in 1991 by the Society of Friends of Music in Athens in parallel with the inauguration of the Megaron – Athens Concert Hall which at the time became home to the ensemble (since 2011, the orchestra has resorted also to the hospitality of the Onassis Culture Centre in Athens). The musicians perform splendidly both on contemporary and historic instruments. The extensive concert repertoire encompasses music ranging from early Baroque to contemporary, and includes opera and ballet productions. The post of the orchestra’s artistic director is currently held by George Petrou, who was preceded by Sir Neville Marriner, Christopher Warren-Green, and Alexander Myrat. Despite the extremely busy concert schedule in Athens, the orchestra appears in numerous prestigious music centres, to mention Musikverein (Vienna), Théâtre des Champs-Elysées and Salle Pleyel (Paris), Opéra Royal (Versailles), Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Palais des Beaux-Arts BOZAR (Brussels), Arsenal (Metz), Opéra de Monte Carlo, Grand Théâtre de Provence (Aix-en-Provence), Tonhalle (Zurich), and graces festivals in Innsbruck, Versailles, and Bucharest. The ensemble cooperates with eminent conductors whose number has included Fabio Biondi, Thomas Hengelbrock, Philippe Entremont, Christopher Hogwood, Helmuth Rilling, Heinrich Schiff, Stephen Kovacevich, Mstislav Rostropovich, and Yehudi Menuhin, and soloists of the greatest renown: Martha Argerich, Yuri Bashmet, Leonidas Kavakos, Joshua Bell, Radu Lupu, and Mischa Maisky. The long list of recordings performed by Armonia Atenea on Decca, Sony Classical, EMI Classics, MCR, and ECM Records labels includes world premieres of Handel’s Alessandro Severo and Gluck’s Il trionfo di Clelia, award-strewn Handel’s Alessandro (including Diapason d’Or, Choc of the year 2012, recording of the month in BBC Music Magazine, December 2012, International Opera Award 2013 – Best Recording, and the Stanley Sadie Award 2013), Baroque Divas (album with baroque opera arias sung by Sonia Prina, Romina Basso, Vivica Genaux, and Mary-Ellen Nesi), Rokoko (Max Emanuel Cencic solo album), Gluck opera arias (tenor arias performed by Daniel Behle; released on the 300th anniversary of the birth of the composer), Counter-tenor Gala (with six of the most popular countertenors), and Beethoven’s Die Geschöpfe des Prometheus. Promotion of contemporary music and an educational programme (with special concerts for school youth) are an important part of the orchestra’s activities.

George Petrou
was born in Greece. He studied piano at the Athens Conservatoire, at the Royal College and at the Royal Academy of Music in London. He enjoyed a successful career as a concert pianist but gradually turned to conducting. He quickly gained attention and established a flourishing international career. He has particular interest in music of the early 18 c. but is equally at home in the classical and the romantic repertoire.

George Petrou is the artistic director of the renowned Athens based Armonia Atenea orchestra, with which he tours and records extensively, performing both on period or modern instruments.

Aside from conducting a wide range of symphonic music he has made a name for himself as an operatic conductor, with emphasis on the historically informed practices, not only in baroque music but also in later repertoire. Future engagements for 2014-15 include Handel’s Serse at the Royal Swedish Opera, Rossini’s Semiramide in Nice, Monteverdi’s Ritorno d’ Ulisse coupled with Nono’s Non hai camin, hai che caminar at the Staatstheater Darmstadt, Hasse’s Siroe at the Opera Royale de Versailles, Purcell’s Arthur in Amsterdam, Brugge, Antwerp, Breda, Handel’s Alessandro in International Handel Festspiel in Halle, Philip Glass’ Penal Colony at the Onassis Cultural Center in Athens.

Concert engagements include Bremen, Bratislava, Trodheim and extensive touring with Armonia Atenea in venues such as Tchaikowski hall (Moscow), Theatre Champs Elyssee (Paris), Palais de Bozar (Brussels), Theater an der Wien (Vienna), Oper Karlsruhe, CRR (Istanbul).

Recent engagement include new productions of Purcell’s King Arthur at Opéra la Monnaie Brussels, Hasse’s Siroe at the Athens Festival, Mozart’s Mitridate at Nationaltheater Mannheim, Handel’s Semele at Opera de Nice, Rossini’s Cenerentola at the Greek National Opera, Handel’s Alessandro at Opéra Royal de Versailles, Megaron of Athens, Staatstheater Wiesbaden, Opéra Vichy, Theater an der Wien, Salle Pleyel Paris and Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Mayr’s Ginevra Di Scozia at Teatro Donizetti in Bergamo and Ingolstadt with the Muenchner Rundfunkorchester, Vivaldi’s Il Farnace at Opéra National du Rhin, Strasbourg and at Opéra Royal de Versailles, Handel’s Semele at Stadttheater Bern, Rossini’s Il Barbiere Di Siviglia, Verdi’s Nabucco, Haydn’s L’Isola Disabitata and Theophrastos Sakellaridis’ operettas Pik Nik, Halima and The Godson in Athens.

Several of George Petrou’s biggest successes have been in operas by Gluck. He has conducted Alceste (at the Megaron of Athens with Anna Caterina Antonacci in the title role and at Oper Leipzig in a new production by P. Konwitzny), Orphee at the Greek National Opera, Iphigénie en Aulide at the newly built Onassis Cultural center and the 1st modern revival of Il trionfo di Clelia at the Megaron, to great acclaim.

Earlier assignments include Donizetti’s Anna Bolena and Emilia di Liverpool as well as Handel’s Theodora in Athens, Lully’s Phaeton and A. Scarlatti’s Il Tigrane at the Saarländisches Staatstheater Saarbrücken, Handel’s Oreste, Arianna in Creta, Tamerlano, Giulio Cesare, Aci Galatea e Polifemo, Vivaldi’s Giustino and Juditha Triumphans, Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea and Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria, and Paisiello’s L’Olimpiade (in his own critical edition).

George Petrou has a very busy recording schedule. Future releases include Hasse’s Siroe for DECCA, a Countertenor Gala and a collection of baroque arias called Baroque Divas for SONY CLASSICAL all with Armonia Atenea. His recent multiple prizewinning DECCA releases include Beethoven’s Creatures of Prometheus, Gluck’s tenor arias with Daniel Behle, Hasse’s Rokoko (a collection of arias and concertos with M. E. Cencic) and Handel’s Alessandro. Additionaly, Mayr’s operas Ginevra and Lodoiska for OEHMS Classics (with the Muenchner Runfunkorchester). He has also recorded Handel’s Oreste, Arianna in Creta, Alessandro Severo, Tamerlano and Giulio Cesare for MDG.