solo

Dimitra plays the zither, a string instrument, and uses ebows and objects on its resonance box to produce sustained or granulated sounds. Her approach focuses on the interplay between spontaneity and elaborate techniques.

In an attempt to describe her music, it is better to focus on the process of music making rather than on using categories. One could think of it as the dynamic relation between the prepared sounds that are then situated in the context of performance. The preparation of sounds is the exercise of “imagined movements”, an operation that takes place before and after the performance, rehearsing solo or playing with other musicians, with the intention of simulating possible music situations. This usually results in a wide range of sound-generating systems, a good example of which are the different tracks of her first solo release, stroke by stroke. The whole point of performing solo is the implementation of these sounds within real performance times. Thus, the context, the space, the duration and the audience shape the music played on each occasion.

stroke by stroke marks her new approach to the zither.

Some recent photos by Antonio Mena from the BEFOREHAND concert: