What’s on this week at UCy cultural fest

The cultural nights at Axiothea Mansion continue adding flavour to old Nicosia as the Cultural Festival of the University of Cyprus presents its autumn agenda of performances. This week, the festival will host a series of music performances as well as a workshop.

On Tuesday, the award-winning Espen Berg Trio from Norway will take the floor of Axiothea Mansion for the first time. Their music enriches the piano trio tradition and contributes to the evolution of the Nordic jazz scene with a compelling combination of powerful melodies and complex rhythms, performed with impressive technical abilities and a highly engaging interplay.

The trio’s leader, award-winning pianist Espen Berg, will lead a free workshop on Rhythm and Improvisation on Wednesday afternoon, open to anyone with some knowledge of music. In this workshop, Berg will talk about his approach to rhythm, which he developed during his ten years of stage experience and touring around the world with his trio.

Recognised for their rhythmically intricate music, in which their Nordic heritage is also apparent, the members of the trio have worked with methods on how to improvise while dealing with complex rhythmical concepts. This will be demonstrated in practice during the workshop, using some of the trio’s songs as examples. Though participation is free, registration is needed.

The music performances will continue on Thursday with The Homelands of the Soul. A group of talented artists from Crete and Cyprus take audiences on a musical journey that transcends physical limits and borders, leading listeners to the homelands of the soul where one never feels a stranger.