Guitar Friends Association Dimitris Fampas

                            ADDRESS:  9 Anaxandrou st.,  Athens  116 31, Greece. Tel: +30 210 9022 503

The Guitar Friends Association Dimitris Fampas, a non profit cultural association, was founded in 1999, under the initiative of the Professor - Guitarist Eva Fampas, to honor the memory of the great virtuoso guitarist Dimitri Fampas, who was a major figure in the music scene and established the guitar school in our country. One of the most brilliant guitarists of his time, he gave numerous concerts all around the world, a gifted professor who created some of the most famous greek guitarists, and a very talented composer who enriched the guitar repertoire with wonderful and original music.

Aims of the Association are :
-To honor the memory of this great artist-composer and much loved teacher:
by providing support for guitar performance, teaching, composing and research in Greece and throughout the world, especially to young and talented guitarists.
by providing opportunities to guitarists around the world to know , study and perform the music of Dimitri Fampas.
by contributing in the development of the Greek culture and it's diffusion abroad.
-To honor members of the music community through such activities as the awarding Of the Association's Honorary Membership and Laureateship.

Activities of the Association are:
The gathering , editing , recording or any other way of reproduction of Dimitri Fampas' work. The organization of concerts, artistic events, lectures, seminars, competitions, the support of musicians and musicologists who interpret his music and write about his work. The organization of every cultural event that helps in the promotion of our aims. The collaboration with other associations, Foundations etc. private or public in Greece and abroad for the same reason

THE BOARD OF THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE YEARS 2012 - 2015

  There are a lot of talented young guitarists who have won the prize the Best Interpretation of Dimitri Fampas' music, in various competitions:

George S. Milchev and David Dyakov from Bulgaria,(3rd Balkan Guitar Festival and Competition, April 2oo4 in Velingrad - Bulgaria). Polyhronis Koutsoumbidis from Greece (Golden Muse Greek - Cyprian Competition for young musicians in Athens, November 2004. The Bulgarian guitarists, George Spasov Milchev and Svetlin Miroslavov Markov (2nd Balkan Guitar Festival and Competition, April 1-5, 2003 Velingrad-Bulgaria). A honorary mention went to Constantinos Panagis (Cyprus). Alexandros Hirtoglou, John Giagourtas, and Andreas Kakaras from Greece (A' Veria Guitar Days competition, May 2002), Mile Karovski, from FYROM, (5th Balkan Guitar festival in Velingrad, Bulgaria, May 2006), George Tosikian from Greece (13th International Hermoupolis Guitar festival, July 2006), Ivan Atanasov Stanchev from Bulgaria (International Guitar Fetsival of Kjustendil, April 2009). 

The Guitar Friends Association Dimitris Fampas, has organized lots of concert series in the Parnassos Literary Club Concert Hall as well as in the Athenaeum International Cultural Centre presenting some exceptional artists from Greece and abroad such as:     KATARINA & FRANSICZEK WIECZOREK (Poland), STANISLAV HVARCHILKOV (Βulgaria), ΤΗΙΒΑULT CAUVIN (France), CARLOS MOLINA (Cuba/USA), GAHUER CARRASCO (Βrazil), SANDRO DI STEFANO (Ιtaly), UROS DOJCINOVIC (Serbia), DAVID DYAKOV (Βulgaria), SHIN SASAKUBO (Japan) and from Greece      EVA FAMPAS, ΙOΑΝΝΑ POLIZOI, ΜΑRΙΑ ΑΝΑGNOSTOPOULOU, ΜΙCHALIS ΚΟΝΤΑXΑΚIΣ, DIMITRIS KASFIKIS, ΝΙΚΟS PANAGIOTIDES, ΚOSTAS ΤSEREGOF, SOKRATES MASTRODIMOS, SOFIA LEKATSA, STAVROS XYNDAS, ΑGGELOS AGYRANOPOULOS , VASILIS VALAVANIS, CHRISTOS VERNARDOS, ΤΖΑVARA BROTHERS, GEORGE MAVROEDES and more

The Association helps and sponsors the organization of the International Guitar Days of Lafkos, an annual guitar festival dedicated to the memory of Dim. Fampas.

 In the June of 2007 the Association participated with a concert in the EUROPEAN MUSIC DAY as well as in the festival "Culture Summer" of the Municipality of Nikaia.      In October 22, 2007 organized in collaboration with the Parnassos Literary Club and the Athens' Sinfonietta a Concert - Honoring Dimitris Fampas presenting the world premiere of 13 new works by Greek composers who participated in the Association's 1st Open Call for guitar scores dedicated to the memory of maestro Dim. Fampas. This concert was recorded by EBU and the featured conposers were: D. NIKITOS, K.HIZARIS, N. XARIZANOS, K.FLERIANOS, A.KARBONE, G.MAVROEDES, N.KOUVARDAS, Y.ARGYROPOULOS, TZABARA BROTHERS, A.MBRIGOS, A.PARASKEVAS, AG. GAVRIIL, G KARYDAKIS and D.FAMPAS

In spring 2008 the Association participated with an event that combined music and poetry, dedicated to the memory of our member and poet Thanassis Kapetanakis, in the activities of the CULTURAL OLYMPIAD which was organized by the Greek Committee for the International Detente and Peace.

In the summer of 2008 (July 30 at the Byzantine Museum of Athens) the Association collaborated with the Musical Ensembles of Athens' Municipality and their President Maestro G.Katsaros presenting a concert dedicated to the guitar and Dimitris Fampas, with the Sympony Orchestra of Athens Municipality, conducted by M. Economou and soloists Eva Fampas, David Dyakov and Sokrates Mastrodimos. Included in the program was the world premiere of the orchestrated by the Brazilian Andersen Viana, "Greek Suite" (2 parts) by Dimitris Fampas.           The success of this concert gave us the opportunity to repeat the concert on October 26, 2008, with the same artists at the TECHNOPOLIS cultural centre of Athens. This wonderful collaboration continued during 2010  as well and on June 20 at the Byzantine Museum, 4 soloists members of our Association performed the Hellenic premiere of the Concierto Iberico by F. Moreno - Torroba as well as the complete Greek Suite by D. Fampas orchestrated by N. Harizanos (the second 2 parts). Soloists were: Eva Fampas, Kostas Tseregof, Aggelos Agyranopoulos and Kostas Kyrolites. Maestro M. Economou conducted the Symphony Orchestra of Athens Municipality.   

Celebrating its 10^th Birthday the Guitar Friends' Association "Dimitris Fampas" organized with the collaboration of the Parnassos Literary Society  the DIMITRIS FAMPAS MEMORIAL CONCERTS, on November 25 and December 2, 2009 at the Parnassos Concert Hall in Athens presenting the World Premiere of 23 New Works for Guitar dedicated to the memory of Dimitris Fampas.         

      These works were composed by composers from 10 different countries of the world, Greece, Italy, Spain, Cuba, The Netherlands, Serbia, Argentina, Chile, New Zealand, Hungary and USA, who participated in the International Open Call  for guitar scores  organized by our Association during the 2008.

The 1st performance of these works was given by a great number of  excellent  guitar soloists such as  Eva Fampas, Kostas Tseregof, George Mavroedes, Aggelos Agyranopoulos, Nickos Athanassakis, Maria Anagnostopoulou, Aris Balatsoukas, Dimitris Kasfikis, Thanassis Georgiades, Amalia Kountouri (flute), Uros Dojčinovič  and the Guitarte ensemble

A honorable mention was awarded to the composers: Ν.Harizanos, Ν. Κοuvardas, Αp. Darlas, Άr. Balatsoukas, Eduardo Morales Caso, Carlos Peron Cano, Luca Vanneschi, Jose Antonio Guerrero Ortiz, Fernando Schulmeier, Mauricio Opazo Muñoz, Η. Κazakes, Κ. Μantzoros, Uros Dojčinovič, Akos Petik, Annette Kruisbrink, Marion Arts, Joe Rosochacki, Scott Giles, G. Μessinis, P. Fragistas , D. Pothitos, V. Μouskouris.  

   In the summer of 2010 we participated in the Athens Fringe Festival with a show based on the lyrics and poems by Athanasios Vavlidas and music by the ensemble Graviton and the guitarist N. Athanasakis.  

The Guitar Friends Association "Dimitris Fampas", participated in the campaign organized by the Fondazione Adkins Chiti: Donne in Musica for the support of the Conservatorio di Musica Alfredo Casella - L' Aquila, which was totally dεstroyed by the earthquake, offering music books, new editions and cds for our colleagues musicians / professors and their students. 
                                                      

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