The presentation of Costis Drygianakis’ recently reissued album “Optical Musics – Volume 2” (1994) took place on Wednesday, May 28, 2025, at the venue of Ov-Off Studio in Athens. The event was part of the events of Krama festival.
After a brief introduction by the Festival organizers, which set the tone for the current interest in the now-30-year-old-album, composer Niki Krasaki spoke first, outlining the context of the era from the perspective of the musical avant-garde, and focusing in the interest for the music traditions of Greece and not only, shown by institutions such as the Center for Contemporary Music Research (KSyME) and the earlier Greek Association of Contemporary Music, an interest which also triggered, to a great extent, the creation of the Greek music schools.
Subsequently, the historian and music critic Xaris Symvoulidis gave the socio-political stigma of the era and its relation with the international but also the local musical trends and especially the emerge of interest for the musical traditions of the world in the context of pop culture, and also attempting an evaluation of the importance of the Second Volume of Optical Musics within this context.
Theologian Pantelis Kalaitzidis referred to the new trends in Greek Orthodox theology during the period under discussion, which abandoned pietism and turned to patristic literature he also spoke on the interconnection of theological interest with the revival of local musical traditions, describing also his personal relation with this musical world.
Finally, Costis Drygianakis referred to the way these musical and theological approaches influenced his own creative ways and the process of crafting this particular album. He outlined the musical technologies of the era and their impact on aesthetics, he mentioned his closest collaborators and inspirers and finally pointed out the common places but also to the common problems of art and religious faith.
There was a Q & A session and the event ended with a DJ set by the music archivist Paul Paulun.
