Music with a mission

Though it lacks a conductor, the Cyprus Chamber Orchestra lacks neither spirit nor skill. Going without a conductor is a conscious decision as the bicommunal orchestra’s 20 professional musicians work as an ensemble, an effort that will be brought to stage in its autumn concert on Monday.

With selections from Bach, Mozart and Albinoni, the autumn concert is an opportunity to hear works of some of the great European composers performed with poise and passion by Greek and Turkish Cypriot musicians. The autumn concert follows a well-attended spring presentation as well as the #UnitedByMusic concert, performed in cooperation with the Berlin Philharmonic as part of Pafos2017.

The brainchild of Natalie Neophytou and Nihat Agdac, the Cyprus Chamber Orchestra combines high quality performance with a mission to promote “peace in Cyprus through the power of music.” Because it is the first bicommunal orchestra in Cyprus, the CCO charts new ground by just existing – but the choice to go without a conductor is bold.

As the evenings begin to cool, the Cyprus Chamber Orchestra’s autumn concert offers the perfect opportunity to retreat indoors for an evening of enjoyment and appreciation of classical music. The CCO’s performance will bring its peaceful mission to mind, and perhaps the concert will leave its audience members feeling a little more connected to the world around them. The concert will be supported by the Bicommunal Technical Committee on Culture.

Autumn Concert
Performance by the bicommunal Cyprus Chamber Orchestra. October 22, Pallas Theatre, Nicosia. 8:30 pm. €10. Tel: 97-804219.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.