Fidetzis
Byron Fidetzis has been a major figure for decades in the musical life of his native Greece, as a conductor, a cellist, and even as a musicologist. He has championed contemporary Greek music and has premiered a wide range of works.
Fidetzis was born in Thessaloniki in 1945. He studied cello and music theory at the State Conservatory in that city and also gained a host of practical knowledge when he joined the orchestra of the Aristotelion University Music Department at age 15. From 1963 to 1968 he was a member of the Northern Greek Symphony Orchestra. Fidetzis earned a government scholarship for cello studies in Vienna, where he received a diploma in 1975. Along the way, he studied conducting with Hans Swarowsky, receiving a degree in this field as well in 1977. For some years he was active both as conductor and cellist, with the former role gradually becoming more important in his career. He appeared as a conductor or as a cello soloist with all the major Greek orchestras and with many groups abroad, around Europe, the Americas, and central Asia. Fidetzis served as conductor of the Greek National Opera House Orchestra from 1985 to 1992, and has continued to cooperate with that company. In 1987 he became permanent conductor of the Athens State Symphony Orchestra, and in 2000 he was named chief conductor of the Symphony Orchestra of the Municipality of Thessaloniki. He has continued to serve those positions while holding permanent posts in Russia and Bulgaria, and has made guest conducting appearances in more than 80 countries.
Fidetzis has been especially known for his advocacy of Greek music of all kinds, especially contemporary works. He conducted the world premiered of Nikos Skalkottas’ Sinfonietta in B flat major and has performed or recorded new Greek operas by numerous composers. Fidetzis is also active as a researcher, reviving and editing scores by Greek composers of all periods for performance. His discography, much of it on the BIS and Naxos labels, has reflected his interest in Greek music, although in 2020 he also released an album of music by the Greek-descended Russian composer Vasily Kalafati on Naxos. That year also saw the release on BIS of an Athens Philharmonic release featuring the Sinfonietta and orchestral works by Skalkottas.
