For the fourth year, the vocal workshop about Rebetiko is starting again
for  2024-2025 in Art Base. Starting from November, in this year's
meetings we are going to learn from the greater vocalists and composers
of Rebetiko. We will experience the diversity and richness of the style
and we will investigate the vocal lines, ornamentation, style and
technique as developed in each song.

We will discuss and analyze the style of each composer and singer, talk
about the theoretical background in Greek modal music and understand the
principles of melodic improvisation in this musical style. In the end of
each workshop the students will be able to understand musical
characteristics of each song, stylistic patterns of the vocal lines as
well as technical information.

During the year, we will have the chance to experience group singing and
explore voice in relation to our body as well.

The workshop includes

•        warm up
•         technical vocal exercises
•         vocal group practice
•        technical and performance guidance
•        repertoire
•        theoretical/technical/stylistic information related to the
repertoire

Each student will also receive individual advice about technique and
interpretation during the lesson.

About Vanessa:

Vanessa Kourtesi  is a musician, vocalist, composer, and vocal educator
based in Rotterdam. Born and raised in Athens, one of her first musical
influences is Rebetiko and Greek traditional music. She has performed in
many Athenian music scenes and collaborated with great musicians of the
genre. She focuses on the music of Greece and the Eastern Mediterranean,
exploring compositional, lyrical, and vocal ways to express herself.  As
a songwriter she uses narrative, poetry, and engages Greek modal music
with jazz and experimental/improvised music, inspired by her experiences
and imagination.
In 2022, she released her first EP titled "Spending time with Esther,"
composed and produced by herself. Currently, she is working on her next
personal album, which will be realized in 2025. Beyond her personal
projects, Vanessa is a vocalist and composer in various formations and
ensembles such as "Merem," (founding member), "The Circle Orchestra"
(founding member) and others. She also participates in music groups that
focus on the musical traditions of Greece and urban folk and
improvised/experimental music performing in venues and festivals around
Greece, Turkey, France, Belgium and the Netherlands (North Sea Jazz
festival, Ano Polis world music festival, Athens Festival, Music Village
festival and others).
She teaches individually and conducts group seminars about voice,
performance and rebetiko in Greece, France, Belgium, and she is a
visitor teacher in Modern music School in Frankfurt, Germany.
She is a graduate of the Codarts-University of the Arts in Rotterdam and
a postgraduate student at the Voice Study Center of the University of
Wales. Her research and educational interests revolve around performance
anxiety in singing.

Dates:
Saturday 9/11/24 12-16.30h
Saturday 14/12/24 12-16.30h
Sunday 15/12/24 11-14h
Saturday 25/1/25 12-16.30h
Sunday 26/1/25 11-14h
Saturday 1/3/25 12-16.30h
Sunday 2/3/25 11-14h
Saturday 12/4/25 12-16.30h
Sunday 13/4/25 11-14h

Saturdays: 65E
Sundays: 45E
Saturday and Sunday in one weekend: 100E

Payment in cash please.

Minimum participation: 5 pp

Registration at the latest one week before, so we can know we have
enough participants and we book the necessary tickets.

Languages: Greek and English

Samples and videos

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