Double Musical Celebration in Patmos – The 4th Chamber Music Festival and the 23rd Religious Music Festival return to meet the public.
Patmos, the “sacred island” of the Aegean, is preparing once again to welcome two major music institutions that have now become an integral part of its cultural identity. From August 26 to September 7, 2025, the island will host the 4th Patmos Chamber Music Festival and the 23rd Patmos Religious Music Festival, offering audiences rare musical experiences set against the island’s unique atmosphere.
This year’s event is structured in two parts:
August 26–31, 2025: The Patmos Chamber Music Festival returns for its 4th edition, bringing together renowned Greek and international artists in concerts of high artistic quality, with repertoire ranging from classical to contemporary art music.
September 1–7, 2025: The Patmos Religious Music Festival, now in its 23rd year, continues to create a mystical experience of sound, light, and word, presenting works of religious and spiritual character in the island’s evocative settings.
“The Religious Music Festival celebrates 23 years this year and, for the past 4 years, has been traveling alongside the Patmos Music Festival, which together have become one of the most eagerly awaited summer events for both Greek and international visitors on our island,” stated the Mayor of Patmos, Nikitas Tsampalakis. “I sincerely hope that this year’s Patmos Music Festival will be a celebration of art, faith, and culture, a lasting source of inspiration and unity for us all.”
This year’s program draws inspiration from the rich history and unique character of Patmos, linking the musical experience with the island’s glorious past and timeless aesthetic charm. Known worldwide as the “Island of the Apocalypse” – where, according to tradition, St. John the Theologian wrote the sacred text of Revelation – Patmos is regarded as the “queen” of the Dodecanese. Its rugged natural beauty, combined with its unparalleled cultural and religious heritage, make it one of Greece’s most enchanting and appealing destinations today.
4th Chamber Music Festival
Performers will include violinists Irène Duval, Michael Guttman, Barnabas Kelemen, Katalin Kokas, Giulia Pianini Mazzucchetti; cellists Steven Isserlis, Christophe Coin, Henri Demarquette; pianists Alessandra Ammara, Michel Dalberto, Maya Oganyan, Roberto Prosseda; bandoneonist Lysandre Donoso; soprano Katerina Mina; the Adorno Quartet; and the Brussels Chamber Orchestra.
The program will span from Viennese classicism (Mozart and Schubert, with a Schubertiade on August 27 in memory of Guido Zaccagnini) to the eclecticism of the 20th century (Maurice Ravel, George Gershwin, Astor Piazzolla), with many of Piazzolla’s compositions featured throughout the festival.
The legendary director Bruno Monsaingeon will also be present, with an evening dedicated to the screening of one of his latest documentaries.
Monsaingeon will be among the teachers of a series of piano masterclasses dedicated to four invited young pianists (Federico Foglizzo, Filippo Lugnan, Andrea Mariani, Nicolas Ventura), who will also attend lessons with Michel Dalberto, Alessandra Ammara, and Roberto Prosseda, and will perform in a festival concert. Events for Patmos’s young music students, coordinated by Olive Wetter and Corinne Bodmer, will also take place. Additionally, the festival will feature the screening of Patmos – A Musical Documentary, produced by the Patmos Music Festival Association and directed by Alberto Girotto, which will be broadcast internationally through the Stingray Multimedia Group channels.
“The Patmos Music Festival,” said Luigi Pianini Mazzucchetti, President of the Festival, “is an event that combines artistic excellence with the promotion of Patmos, with concerts enlivening different and evocative locations. This year’s program stands out for the presence of multifaceted artists from around the world. Many thanks to the organizers, who with passion and creativity know how to build an international musical experience year after year.”
23rd Religious Music Festival
This year’s program will feature chamber music masterpieces inspired by sacred themes, such as Olivier Messiaen’s Quatuor pour la fin du temps, performed by the “Dream Team” of Steven Isserlis, Pierre Genisson, Irène Duval, and Maya Oganyan, and Joseph Haydn’s The Seven Last Words of Christ, in the string quartet version commissioned to the Adorno Quartet. Greek soprano Eleni Lydia Stamellou will present a recital dedicated to the Cantigas de Santa Maria with lutenist Michael Eberle and cellist Antoine Billet.
The opening and closing of the Patmos Religious Music Festival will be entrusted to two major choirs of the Greek Orthodox tradition.
On September 1, the start of the liturgical year of the Greek Orthodox Church, the opening concert will be given by the Musicaeterna Byzantina choir, founded by Teodor Currentzis and conducted by Antonios Koutroumpis, with a program dedicated to the Apostle John, who wrote the Revelation in Patmos.
The festival will conclude on September 7 with the second of two concerts by the Armenian Chamber Choir, conducted by Robert Mlkenyan, performing the Armenian liturgy Patarag set to music by Archimandrite Komitas (1869–1935).
“As every year, the Festival will host over seventy musicians and numerous instruments on the island, including a large Fazioli piano, which will be transported across steep slopes and narrow passages to reach the concert venues,” notes Massimo Fino, Executive Director of the Patmos Music Festival. “Audience and musicians alike will experience something unique, where every note challenges, excites, unites.”
All concerts are free and open to the public. However, seat reservations must be secured through the Festival’s website, where the detailed program, artist biographies, and organizers’ messages can also be found.
Media Sponsors: ERT3, ERT South Aegean, Third Program 90.9
The festival is jointly organized by the Municipality of Patmos and the Associazione Patmos Music Festival. It exists primarily thanks to the generosity of its sponsors, especially its main sponsor, Mr. Alain Rauscher.
It is also supported by the South Aegean Region, the Municipality of Patmos, the General Secretariat for the Aegean and Island Policy, Blue Star Ferries, Dodekanissos Sea Ways, and Aktis Hotel.
