Lefkes Nyxtes

Lenia Zafeiropoulou and Thodoris Tzovanakis dedicate an evening to two major voices of late Romanticism from the European North, Jean Sibelius and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. In their songs and short piano forms, the two composers share many inspirations: both often draw from folk traditions and ballads of their homelands, both favor the dark and ominous pages of erotic poetry, and both create enigmatic stories with their music. The program includes Sibelius's piano miniatures and songs like Schwarze Rosen and Der erste Kuss, alongside Tchaikovsky's Dumka and various op. 47 and op. 16 works. The performance covers an expressive spectrum from quiet internal monologues to extroverted passion, dramatic lament, and explosive joy, presenting the mature fruits of late Romanticism.