Time Out at 40

Michalis Hatzigiannis | Marcos Baghdatis | Spiros Pisinos

Spiros Pisinos

Spiros Pisinos
Music may be the love of Pisinos’s life, but the conductor was first seduced by biophysics. Working at MIT, he lived on three different continents and helped develop the first ever MRI. Having turned his back on science, he went to study music in Vienna and, since graduating, has conducted some of the greatest orchestras on the planet. He is currently the artistic director of the Cyprus Symphonic Orchestra.

How did you combine music with science?
Music isn’t an impulsive emotion like people think. It’s a science, with structure and architecture. In the same respect, biophysics or any other science that’s practised at a high level transforms itself into art, as thought becomes ever more beautiful. Therefore there’s beauty in scientific thought and analytical thought in the exploration of music.

Music became your great love though…
As fascinating as science is, at the end of the day it’s kind of cold. Music excites and satisfies the spirit, it invigorates, it relaxes you and feeds your soul. It’s a form of release. Feature continues

You’ve conducted some of the most prestigious orchestras on the planet…
They were orchestras that played an important part in the field of classical music. Like, for example, the New York Philharmonic, the National Orchestra of France, the Mariinsky Philharmonic of St. Petersburg and the Philharmonia in London. These were amazing experiences that have proved very useful for me today.

Why did you decide to return to Cyprus?
It was a challenge. Cyprus has only recently started to focus on the art of Western classical music and I think that we’ve managed to achieve certain things as a symphonic orchestra – even though we still have a long way to go. The orchestra had turned into a foundation with its own board of directors and that was an indication that it was ready to travel down a more professional route.

What are you goals now?
I’m trying to bring the music as close as I can to the audience. Beyond that, I want the orchestra to reach the peak of its musical capabilities, to give chances to talented up-and-coming Cypriot musicians and soloists and to strengthen Cyprus’s musical image abroad. It’s very important to send out the message that Cyprus isn’t just a political problem. It can also produce culture.

It was under your initiative that the Ensemble Philharmonia was created with Greek Cypriot, Turkish Cypriot and European Soloists
It was an effort to bring together top professional musicians from every ethnic community in Cyprus: Greek Cypriots, Turkish Cypriots, Maronites and Armenians. It was a tough thing to put together because many of them were spread all around the world. Finally in June 2007 we did it, and the Ensemble Philharmonia performed to great applause at the Cyprus Month in Paris.
Interview: Barbara Georgiadou

www.timeoutcyprus.com

Michalis Hatzigiannis | Marcos Baghdatis | Spiros Pisinos