Music on the move
There is a risk in the music of composer and bassist Mihalis Kalkanis, a certain challenge that enables his compositions and his playing to obtain power. He is considered one of the most daring musicians of his generation, as he puts himself in a different environment in every step: First he’s taping his grandma singing a cappella a traditional Greek song and then blends it with electronic sounds; then he’s self-recording an improvisation in an underground car park and immediately afterwards he’s at the southernmost edge of Europe recording another one. Every single note is an artistic experience, as he doesn’t just capture a moment of reality but interprets his reality through musical narratives that keep you in a pleasantly disturbed anxiety, achieving a breathtaking level of emotion. A typical example is the «World Echoes in Athens» project, which began with a year round field recording in open or hidden places in Athens serving as temples where immigrants went to pray. His interpretations seemed like trophies from a hunt of authenticity that first occurred in an actual space and time, and then became completed through recollections of several emotions. Mihalis Kalkanis’ music is a contemporary art form, blending jazz and classical influences with both electronic and Greek traditional elements in an atmospheric and groovy urban context. A bold sound, ready to interact with other artistic forms of expression such as video or photography. Music on the move, unconventional, original and inevitably true.
