Alkis Zopoglou & Kontrabando
BALKAN SOUTH
THE FUTURE SOUND OF GREEK TRADITION
Alkis Zopoglou’s music in the southern Balkans serves as a connecting link between the dynamic sound of the Balkans and the tropical music of the Mediterranean, creating an original sonic experience.
Under the sounds of seagulls and fishing boats, amidst the paved alleys of the Old Town and Mohammed Ali’s Imaret, the grandiose monument overlooking the port of his birthplace Kavala in Northern Greece, is where kanun virtuoso and composer Alkis Zopoglou composes his music.
Profoundly melodic, at times rhythmical almost Dionysian and at times lyrical and cinematic, his tunes exchange contraband musical cargoes with the musicians aboard his band “Kontrabando” journey.
With his Kanun at the forefront (the “canon” for the maqams, the musical scales of the East), Zopoglou’s compositions are enriched with the introduction of various both eastern and western instuments (violin, guitar, accordeon, oud, clarinet, drums etc.) evoking timbre bearing Greek, Balkan, Mediterranean, Jazz, Classical, even Rock colors.
This sound combination results in an original sonic journey that captivates the listener with its uniqueness.
Musicians:
Acoustic bass guitar: Panos Karathanasis
Guitars: Ioannis Tsigkas
Kanun: Alkis Zopoglou
Violin: Makis Baklatzis
Accordeon: Thanos Stavridis
Booking
medigrεcian productions
+41 77 502 90 58 Zürich Switzerland (Fauzia)
contact@medigrecian.com
+30 6947 189109 Kavala Greece (Alkis)
Kontrabando is available all year with a music program that can be customized to meet the requirements of any festival or venue.
Discography
Kontrabando “Cargo”
The aroma of tradition is intense, both in the orchestration and in the musical paths in which many of the tracks move. But further to this, the sound is of today, direct, and most importantly, alive, coming from a group of new musicians from Kavala who loves and also teaches traditional music.
Kontrabando “Elephant”
Kanun player virtuoso Alkis Zopoglou & his backing band Kontrabando return with a multi-faceted West meets East instrumental album of contemporary mediterranean music with threads of jazz, rock and world music.