Pianist Vassilis Varvaresos in Concert
November 16, 2017, at Merkin Concert Hall at the Kaufman Music Center

The Hellenic-American Cultural Foundation, with the support of the Onassis Foundation USA,  presented at Merkin Hall one of the most promising musicians of his generation, Greek pianist Vassilis Varvaresos. He has appeared on major stages in Europe and the US, and is regularly invited to festivals all over the world. Following his recital at Carnegie Zankel Hall, he was invited to perform at the White House for President Barack Obama.

He is a laureate of many international competitions, such as Young Concert Artists, New York when he was 14 years old. Most recent prizes were those of the George Enescu International Competition 2014 in Bucharest and the Piano Masters Competition 2015 in Monte Carlo.

He has recorded three CD’s. His 4th (solo) album, containing various ‘Valses’, will be released in 2017.
 
A reception with the artist followed the performance.

Eleventh Annual New York City Greek Film Festival
Sept 28 – October 15, 2017, at various locations

The Hellenic-American Cultural Foundation is a sponsor of the New York City Greek Film Festival. The festival aspires to bring the best work of Greek filmmakers, past and present, to New York City and its environs.
 

Greece, Byzantium and Post-Byzantium at The Met
May 31, 2017, at the offices of Debevoise & Plimpton

Dr. Helen C. Evans, the Mary and Michael Jaharis Curator for Byzantine Art at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, discussed how the Byzantine and post-Byzantine centuries maintained many aspects of classical Greek culture and traditions, even as Christianity replaced the gods of Greek antiquity and ultimately the Ottoman Empire. Dr. Evans oversees the Byzantine, Early Christian and Early Jewish collections at The Met.

The Mary and Michael Jaharis Galleries highlight the importance of the Byzantine Empire, ruled from Constantinople as a major world power for centuries, and of the role that Greece played in developing many images used by Christians around the globe. Four exceptional Cretan icons, acquired by The Met through the generosity of the Jaharis family in 2013, were the primary focus of Dr. Evans’s talk.

This was the third spring event with curators from The Met addressing Greek heritage. A reception with Dr. Evans followed the program. 

An article in The National Herald provides highlights of the event.
 

Jews of Greece: 25 Centuries of Continuous Presence
April 19, 2017, at the offices of Norton Rose Fulbright

The Hellenic-American Cultural Foundation presented, along with The Hellenic-American Chamber of Commerce and American Friends of the Jewish Museum of Greece, a lecture on the historical presence of Jews in Greece.

Dr. Mimis Cohen, MD, FACS, FAAP, is a founding member of the American Friends of the Jewish Museum of Greece and a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He gave a presentation on the early interaction of the Greek and “Romaniote” Jewish communities around the Eastern Mediterranean, including the cross-fertilization of ideas which has had a significant and long-lasting impact on Western civilization and became the basis of Judeo-Christian culture. The history of Romaniote communities and their traditions and customs was discussed as well as the influence from their non-Jewish neighbors in the development of a unique culture. Tragically 86% of the pre-war Jewish population of Greece perished during the Holocaust, including the Jews from the Romaniote communities.

Dr. Cohen was born and raised in Athens after the Second World War. His parents survived the Holocaust in Athens thanks to the courage of Greek Orthodox friends. A reception with Dr. Cohen followed the program.

An article in The National Herald provides highlights and video of the event.