A Greek composer born in 1965 in Athènes.
A pianist trained at the National Conservatory of Athens, Alexandros Markeas took advanced classes at the Paris Conservatory with Alain Planès (1987). From 1992 he there also studied composition with Guy Reibel, Michaël Levinas, Laurent Cuniot and Luis Naon. In 1997-1998 he followed the course of composition and new technologies at Ircam before taking up residence at the Villa Medici (1999-2001).
Favouring encounters with improviser musicians of different cultures, Markeas is interested in the languages of traditional music. Different domains of expression such as text, the theatre, the visual arts and architecture are all food for his thought. He calls into question the traditional form of the concert and proposes pieces marked by a theatrical spirit in which musical listening is at the centre of his creative process. Markeas deals with questions of rhythm and repetition, uses multimedia techniques and composes music, in the lineage of the spectral school, that is attached more to the sound than the note. In this way his work contributes to the repertories for the concert, music theatre, music for the image and sound installations. His works include Time-scope project, a visual and sound installation-itinerary premiered at the Villa Medici (2000); Dimotika for mezzo-soprano, children’s chorus and instrumental ensemble, commissioned by the French State and premiered by Ars Nova (2003); Outsider a chamber opera, commissioned by the French State and premiered by the ensemble 2e2m conducted by Pierre Roullier and staged by Mireille Larroche at the Péniche Opéra (2008); Re:Walden, music for a show by the author and stage director Jean-François Peyret (2011); Propagations for an ensemble of improvisers, first performed by the ensemble Warning (2013); Animaux-Machines for cello, double bass and accordion, first performed by the ensemble C-barré (2014); Un autre Odyssée, requiem pour les migrants morts en mer Méditerranée for vocal ensemble, instrumental trio and audiovisual diffusion, first performed by La Main Harmonique (2016); Les rayures du zèbre for jazz and contemporary ensembles, in co-composition with Sylvain Cathala, first performed by the ensembles Print and TM+, conducted by Laurent Cuniot (2017); Die neuen Ruinen von Athen for string quartet, first performed by the Diotima Quartet (2019); Intrépides, song cycle for female voice and instrumental trio, first performed by Julia Wischniewski and the ensemble Pulcinella (2020).
Alexandros Markeas also composes pedagogical works and has taught generative improvisation at the Paris Conservatory since 2003.
