APTÁLIA PROJECT
Aptália Project aims to preserve and highlight the rich musical heritage of the Greek refugees from Asia Minor, through the research, study and performance of the music in contemporary arrangements. 2022 will be the 100 year anniversary of the Smyrna Catastrophe, which gives this project special gravity. The inspiration behind the project derives from the history of our founder Erini’s great grandparents, who were Greek refugees from Asia Minor (Anatolia - today’s Western Turkey) and whose musical heritage was passed on to her. Currently our fiscal sponsor for the projects is Fractured Atlas.
Donate here: https://fundraising.fracturedatlas.org/greek-traditional-songs-from-asia-minor-project
ERINI & THE APTÁLIA ENSEMBLE
Erini & The Aptália Ensemble
Erini founded the Aptália Ensemble in order to present the musical tradition of the Greek refugees from Asia Minor. The ensemble consists of highly acclaimed musicians of Greek traditional music that specialize in the music of Asia Minor. The members include: Chryssanthi Gkika on istanbul kemençe (politiki lyra), Taxiarhis Georgoulis on oud and Vagelis Karipis on percussion. All the members of the ensemble are virtuosic and deeply rooted in the tradition, while exploring fresh and innovative ways of performing it and keeping it alive. They present the music in its traditional form but in a renewed way.
