SAN FRANCISCO – The opening of Uproot, the Greek Chamber Music Project (GCMP) concert tour marking the centennial of the Asia Minor Catastrophe, takes place on Friday, February 3, 8 PM, at Old First Concert, 1751 Sacramento Street in San Francisco, and live-streamed online. The tour celebrates the vibrant musical heritage of the region while capturing the refugee experience through song.

Tickets and additional information are available online: https://bit.ly/3RoOsG2.

Admission for the February 3 performance is $20-25.This performance is made possible in part by the generous support of Dr. Alexi Exuzides. Following the online streaming of the February 3 concert, the recording will be available on YouTube through the same link.

The tour continues on Friday, February 10, 7 PM, Sacramento State University’s Hinde Auditorium, 6000 J Street in Sacramento, with free admission. This performance is sponsored by the Hellenic Studies Program at Sacramento State University.

The Friday, February 12 performance takes place at 4 PM St. Paul Lutheran Church 1658 Excelsior Avenue in Oakland. Admission: $20-25.

The talented artists performing in the concert tour are Katerina Clambaneva on vocals, Ellie Falaris Ganelin on flute, Lewis Patzner on cello, Jonathan Alford on piano (Feb. 12), and Elektra Schmidt on piano (Feb. 3 and 10).

Ganelin spoke with The National Herald in a previous interview about the concert tour, noting that, “a century ago, my family was among the many Greeks living in Smyrna who had to flee their cosmopolitan city under seige, known as the Asia Minor Catastrophe. Uproot features treasured love songs from before the Catastrophe, as well as songs of longing and displacement in response.”

“Many tunes will be familiar to fans of the rembetiko tradition, but with an entirely new sound,” Ganelin continued. “Every song is lovingly arranged by myself, as well as by a few guest arrangers. This is my most personal program to date, and one that brings me close to my ancestors.”

GCMP is a presenter and record label that celebrates the Greek world through captivating programming in intimate concert settings. Recent programs have included the East Coast tour Remembering the Jews of Greece, deeply personal songs about The Iliad in Conversations with Homer, and the commissioning of Talos Dreams inspired by the myth of the first robot.

GCMP is a champion of Greek composers, shedding light on the rich musical repertoire coming out of Greece and the Greek diaspora. GCMP’s concerts of all-Greek works are so unique, that similar programs are rarely performed even within Greece. Past performance venues include the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Library of Congress, as well as cultural centers and universities across the U.S. and
Canada.

The trailer for the concert tour Uproot: Music from Asia Minor is available on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3jnaFaL.