AFRODYSSEY ORCHESTRA
In the Land of Aou Tila
ALT001 (LP / Digital)
Afrodyssey Orchestra are an instrumental ensemble from Athens, Greece, comprising seven established musicians of diverse musical backgrounds. They came together through a series of musical journeys over the years — and officially as Afrodyssey Orchestra from 2013. The band’s influences span Jazz, Funk, Psychedelic, traditional West African dance music and percussion as well as the Greek musical culture. Their infectious style stems from an experimental conversation between these different musical forms and traditions.
Afrodyssey Orchestra are:
Konstantinos Arvanitis – Guitar, composition, musical arrangement
Vassilios Ikonomidis – Percussion, Balafon
Leandros Fratnik – Drums
Vasilis Papastamopoulos – Bass
Narayan Protin – Djembe, Percussion, Kamelen Ngoni
Panagiotis Raptis – Alto saxophone
Thodoris Rellos – Tenor Saxophone
Afrodyssey Orchestra are unique in Europe for their use of Greek and West African musical forms together and their sound — an expression of contemporary Athens. In devising and performing compositions Afrodyssey seek to evoke communion between audience and music, transmitting the impulse to move – an intention that reconnects to the origins of Greek music as a process that gave a village social cohesion. In addition to their original compositions, the band performs innovative versions of well-known African and Greek traditional music. Most band members are multi-instrumentalists — lesser-known instruments played include the Kamelen Ngoni, a type of African harp, and the Balafon, an ancestor of the Marimba and Vibraphone.
