Attika Plucked String Orchestra

ATTIKA was founded in 1993 by Aris Dimitriadis, its Artistic Director. Since 1997 it operates under the hospices of the non-profit music association Erato. Aris Dimitriadis has been working with Mandolin Orchestras for 20+ years. As a Mandolin soloist he has collaborated with many classical music groups and orchestras both in Greece and abroad. He created Attika to fill a quality gap in the contemporary Greek Mandolin scene by building on a long tradition of excellence and professionalism, which in the past made Greek orchestras renowned internationally.

Attika’s main objective is to expand the appeal of Mandolin music internationally. With a well-researched repertoire, Attika is following on the steps of the great Italian and French orchestras of this genre. However it also draws on an extensive Greek tradition, particularly 19th and early 20th century popular music from the Heptanese and Athens. Attika is the only Greek orchestra interpreting music that covers the entire spectrum of the last five centuries: from the Renaissance to the Italian Canzonetta, from Baroque to Romanticism, from Classical to Modern.

The Orchestra’s composition is as follows: A-Mandolins, B-Mandolins, Mandola Alto, Mandola Tenore, Mandoloncello, Guitars, Double Bass, Cembalo and Piano. Most members of its creative team are professional musicians, the rest being very talented and motivated amateurs. They have participated in several concerts, festivals and recordings in Greece, Turkey, Italy, United Kingdom, Belgium, Taiwan, Albania and Hungary collaborating with artists of various nationalities and backgrounds, e.g. National Opera House in Athens, Kemal-Resit-Rey Concert Hall in Istanbul, Concert Hall of the Plovdiv 's Academy of Music, Dance and Fine Arts, International Music Festival in Rhodes, Early Music Festival in Paros, Mandolin Orchestra Festival in Cefalonia. Worth mentioning is the first international performance Pavlos Ventouras’ PYLES in collaboration with the Association of Greek Composers, the recording of Vassiliki Nika’s ANAFORA STO MIKI and Nikolaos Mantzaros' SINFONIA No5 (arranged for Attika by Victor Kioulaphides) etc.