not just a loop, not just a loop, not just a loop, not just a loop...

Composition, musical arrangement and transcription of songs in an environment resembling that of a rehearsal, using loop-stations, effect-pedals, as well as acoustic instruments. Musicians that have already been experimenting with effect-pedals, and acoustic-instrument players will come together in this workshop, with the goal of shaping a unique orchestra. The students will study with one another so that they are able to compose and transcribe music with all the means they will acquire through the sessions. We will approach this through the manipulation of effects and their capabilities / usage as tools of musical arrangement, combining them with acoustic instruments to discover new paths in how they can blend musically.

Chorikes Syntysies

The workshop is based on the design and implementation of an architectural installation in the village of Kato Drys. The workshop will be addressing public space within the traditional Cyprus village, as a collector of rich and complex interactions, both planned and spontaneous. The installation will support activities of Fengaros festival while energising the space with new programmes. The creation of these spaces will address the needs of the various users, social and cultural requirements, encouraging both planned and spontaneous social interaction. During the workshop, participants will go through all the stages of the design process, eventually constructing the final proposal(s) at 1:1 scale on the proposed site. Workshop Tutors and curators: Delis Papadopoulos, Eleonora Antoniadou, Teresa Tourva, Dimitris Thomopoulos, Dimitris Economidis, Eleni Flouri and Andreas Tsiaklis.

Jazz Music Workshop

Jazz is a type of music taught in the oral tradition. This workshop will involve ensemble-playing with analytical talk. The focus is on rhythm, which sonically is what defines Jazz. There is way too much focus in schools on harmony – a Eurocentric concept. Jazz operates on the same principles as African music. We will talk about why historically certain things were played, and what their meaning is. It is about learning a language, a way of life. Musicians will play tunes, which may be interrupted for criticism. There will be no sight-reading as the workshop will mainly focus on listening and learning by ear. Participants must be prepared for heavy criticism if the situation warrants it; Egos can be checked at the door. The same rules that apply in Jazz also apply to learning any other language; the same is true regarding group improvisation – how you play on the bandstand mirrors how you interact with other humans in everyday life. The focus will be on Jazz – defined by me personally as music that sounds like it came from Louis Armstrong. There will be no focus on later derivatives such as Electric-Fusion, Free Improvisation and the like.

A workshop for the human voice

Each voice is unique. Our goal is to make good use of the particularities of our voice and experiment with it in a creative manner. The workshop explores the possibilities and limits of the human voice, treating the voice as a musical instrument. Commencing from simple vocal forms, we will create a vocal orchestra, named Happy Hour Choir. The Happy Hour Choiris an orchestra which is transformed into a vehicle, ready to embark on a journey in the world of music. An instrumental composition from Manos Hadjidakis, a song from Lilipoupoli, a melody from the Arabic world orchestras, a polyphonic tune from Bulgaria, a rhythmic form from India, a traditional song from Dodekanisa; all these different elements will form a source of inspiration for the next music station of our journey. At the same time, the workshop functions as an experiment, touching upon the means with which we participate in a group and the way we contribute to the end result through our advantages and our weaknesses, discovering the power of our voice within our coexistence with other voices.

Artist Residency

Dave de Rose will be attending the Music Village as Resident Artist, spending the first few days in all the workshops as well as getting heavily involved in the running of each evening's jam sessions. During the initial days of the Music Village he will be selecting a few students from each workshop to create an ensemble, which will perform on the first day of Fengaros Festival. The group will rehearse outside of workshop hours and the music will be catered to the students' abilities making use of diverse music material including some of Dave's compositions,so as to present a final production that showcases the many aspects of their learning at the village. The ensemble will be collaborating on every aspect of the final performance, including scheduling rehearsals and managing all aspects of their preparation, from stage presentation to sound, as well as musical direction and arrangements. The group will be encouraged to stretch the compositions beyond recognition in order to create an original performance which showcases their personalities and creativity.

Place, Speech, Sound - Creative Writing Workshop

The creative writing workshop will be dealing with the techniques of setting lyrics or poems to music and with the lyric-writing art as material to be set to music. The source of inspiration will be the concept of place (space), as it provides the setting in which the life and history of its people evolves, in this case Cyprus. The workshop will use elements from both Cypriot traditional music and the broader modern Greek creation. The workshop’s goal is the development / improvement of the participants’ creative skills and their practice of composing different musical and lyrical elements, inspired both by their country as well as their personal music influences.

Storytelling Workshop

Marina Katsari returns to Fengaros Music Village with a comprehensive storytelling workshop, which incorporates learning-by-doing and full participation. The instructor invites her participants to traverse and practise the theory of the narrative art in action; she challenges them to track down and analyse the ineffable strength of oral ability and delve deeply into the techniques of narration. This year, Marina Katsari will trace back the boundaries between personal and collective narration; boundaries between the “I” and the “we” of people’s stories, making good use of docudrama. Additionally, a real-time connection between narration as such and other figurative arts is attempted (music, dance etc).

Finding your voice

As a sequel to last year’s workshop, Michael Kapilidis will attempt to help participants navigate themselves with more ease and efficiency in the long journey of discovering their own voice on their instrument. Devoted to his philosophy of a teaching approach that ignores all music genres (agnostic way of teaching), he will provide students with tips, share his concepts and recommend exercises / techniques; all of which can be tailored to suit and cater to each student’s needs for their own personal expression.

Bouzouki

This workshop will reveal the virtues and positive facets of the instruments that have marked the tradition of Greece, through the hands and the aesthetic of one of the greatest living bouzouki players. The lessons will concentrate on the two important aspects of the Bouzouki (and other similar instruments): technical dexterity and the principles of improvisation, while paying special attention to “dromoi” and their harmonization.

Modern Guitar Vol.2

The workshop’s goal is for the students to gain more ease and technical ability with the instrument by exploring the world of improvisation, and at the same time to expand their knowledge regarding the guitar’s role in an ensemble. During the lessons the students will work on technique, aesthetics, and building a musical vocabulary in all aspects (melody, harmony and rhythm), which will eventually allow them to express themselves with greater freedom. The formation of ensembles among students from other workshops will be highly encouraged as to aim towards team creativity as well as the practice of perception regarding the personal role that each individual has within a larger group.

Afro-Brazilian Percussion

In this percussion workshop students will have the opportunity to learn and familiarise themselves with a handful of genuine percussion instruments such as the surdo, ganza, caixa, tamborim, agogo bells, repinique, cuica and pandeiro. During the lessons the rhythmology, technique and phrasing of each instrument will be taught separately for each instrument. A lot of emphasis will be given to Afro-Brazilian musical genres such as Samba Batucada and Samba Reggae. The workshop aims, besides the student’s personal musical experience, to encourage team communication and creativity as well as to show students the musical strengths and benefits of performing in a group. This will be a unique and fun experience for students as they will be able to perform what they have been taught in front of an audience at the end of the week.