Program

F. Liszt – Dante Sonata
J. Brahms – Variations and Fugue on a Theme by Handel Opus 24
Grigorios Zamparas

L.v. Beethoven – Piano Sonata no. 30, op. 109
Shanna Thompson

M. Ravel – Oiseaux Tristes
Liszt: Soirées de Vienne, S. 427
F. Chopin – Polonaise op. 26, no 1 in C sharp minor

Biographical Notes

Grigorios Zamparas has received rave reviews for his performances in recitals, chamber music concerts and orchestral concerts in Greece, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Russia, Latin America, South Korea and the United States. He frequently appears in various festivals around the world, such as the famous Newport Music Festival (Rhode Island, USA), Mainly Mozart Festival (Miami, USA), Artist Series of Sarasota (USA), Salon of the Arts (Sofia, Bulgaria), the International Portoheli Festival e.t.c. Furthermore, he has appeared as a soloist in more than twenty different piano concertos, with orchestras such as the Porto Alegre Symphony Orchestra (Brazil), the Indiana University Symphony Orchestra, the Boston Neo-Politan Chamber Orchestra, the Togliati Philharmonic (Russia), the Sofia Soloists (Bulgaria) and the Bohuslav Martinu Philharmonic Orchestra (Czech Republic). He is an assistant professor of music and head of the piano department at the University of Tampa in the United States, as well as member of the Quartet de Minaret, a piano quartet based at the same university. In the academic year 2010-2011 he received the Outstanding Scholarship or Creative Work Award. Grigorios Zamparas started studying piano at the age of seven, while he received his piano diploma from the Lamia Conservatory in 1995 with the distinguished Greek teacher Yorgos Manessis. He holds a DMA from the University of Miami where he studied with Ivan Davis, a student of Vladimir Horowitz. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Indiana (MM), the University of Indianapolis (BM) and the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Since 1993 he has appeared continuously at the International Portoheli Festival where he has performed more than 300 works. Recently, the American label Centaur Records released G. Zambara’s recordings of the five Piano Concertos of the Russian composer Anton Rubinstein.

Shanna Thompson holds a Masters of Music in Piano Performance and Sacred Studies from the University of Florida as well as a Bachelors of Music in Piano Performance from the University of Tampa. She has performed solo and chamber works in master classes and international festivals across Europe, including the Portoheli Festival for Arts and Culture and the Piano Plus Festival in Xanthi, Greece. Shanna is the recipient of the 2023-24 UF Graduate Student Teaching award, the Marvin Hamlisch Piano scholarship and the Community Foundation of Tampa Bay scholarship. Shanna currently works full time as a piano teacher in Tampa, Florida teaching private students of all ages.

Aulon Binos began his piano studies with piano teacher Stella Karantasi at the Contemporary Conservatory of Athens and then with piano pedagogue and pianist Yorgos Manesis. He studied for a year at Hellenic

American University and in 2012 he continued his studies with Merita Rexha Tershana

at the Music University of Fine Arts of Tirana (Albania) from where he received in 2015

his Piano Bachelor with highest honours. He has given many concerts in Greece and Albania, both solo and chamber music. He has given many concerts in Greece and Albania, both in solo and chamber music capacity. From 2008 until today, he takes part in the concerts of the International Portoheli Festival.

He participated as orchestral pianist, under the direction of conductor Michael England and did the musical preparation for the Greek stagings of the People Entertainment blockbuster “The Phantom of the Opera” by A.L. Webber with the cast of the London’s West End production in 2020 and 2023. The play was presented

at the Christmas Theater in Athens and at the Thessaloniki Concert Hall. Recently Bino did the musical preparation for the play “Persephone” with music by Dimitris Maragopoulos and directed by Elli Papakonstantinou.