On June 21, Athens will join a continent-wide musical celebration as the Athens Concert Hall opens its garden to a live broadcast of EUROPIANO, an ambitious pan-European event linking some of Europe’s most important music capitals through a day of performances.
Held as part of European Music Day, the free event will run from 4:30 p.m. until late evening, offering audiences the chance to experience a continuous musical journey across 11 European cities on a large outdoor screen.
Produced by ARTE and ZDF, EUROPIANO brings together internationally acclaimed pianists, leading orchestras and landmark concert venues in a single-day broadcast. Viewers in Athens will be able to follow performances from locations including Vienna’s Konzerthaus, Paris’ Philharmonie and Lisbon’s Belém Tower, among other renowned cultural sites across Europe.
One of the highlights of the evening is expected around 8 p.m., when the broadcast returns to Athens. The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, conducted by Constantinos Carydis, will perform Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5, known as the “Emperor” Concerto, with pianist Lukas Sternath as soloist. The concert will take place on Pnyx Hill, against the backdrop of the Acropolis and the Attic sky.
Megaron Athens Garden during a UNITEL screening.
EUROPIANO features an exceptional lineup of internationally celebrated pianists, including Martha Argerich, Yulianna Avdeeva, Rafał Blechacz, Bruce Liu, Eric Lu, Mao Fujita, Lukas Sternath, Hayato Sumino, Nobuyuki Tsujii and Anna Vinnitskaya. Representing a wide range of musical traditions, generations and artistic approaches, they will perform alongside distinguished European ensembles.
Participating orchestras include the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestre de Paris, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, the Gulbenkian Orchestra and other leading ensembles. They will be led by prominent conductors such as Klaus Mäkelä, Constantinos Carydis, Hannu Lintu, Alain Altinoglu and Petr Popelka.
With free admission available through online reservation, the event offers audiences a rare opportunity to experience a day-long celebration of classical music that spans Europe’s cultural landscape without leaving Athens.
By transforming its garden into an open-air viewing venue, the Athens Concert Hall aims to connect local audiences with one of the most ambitious musical collaborations staged across Europe, creating a shared experience that transcends borders through the universal language of music.
