Dimitris Dapergolas - Composer

DIMITRIS DAPERGOLAS (Athens, 20/5/1946 - 11/1/1996)

Since his childhood he was nurtured by church music, while his first musical notes were taught by his uncle, composer Gerassimos Robotis. At the age of 20, he worked as a conductor of a modern orchestra, while studying piano at the Hellenic Conservatory, with Alexandros Tournaisen, advanced theory with Maria Hatoupi, morphology and history of music with Antiochos Evangelatos.

Having received degrees in vocal, harmony, and counterpoint, in 1975 he was admitted to the Royal Conservatory of Brussels where he studied conducting, symphony, opera and choir with Julien Ghyoros and Ghy Barbier, fugue with Marcel Quinet, orchestration with Jacquelline Fontyn, music analysis with Frederik Van Rossum,  taking the title of Symphony Orchestra Director in 1979.

Returning to Greece, he received a Greek degree in fugue (Greek Conservatory), was appointed music teacher of secondary education with an organic position in the 1st high school of Corfu, tought senior music theory and conducted the symphony orchestra of the Corfu Philharmonic conservatory.

Dimitris Dapergolas was the founder of the Symphony Orchestra of the Municipality of Corfu in 1982 and he conducted it until 1990. He performed in many concerts at international festivals in Corfu, Patras and other cities with important works of the symphonic repertoire and of Greek composers, too, amongst them the Opera by Gerasimos Robotis "The daughter of the murderer".

Dimitris Dapergolas has also conducted the State Symphony Orchestra of Belgium, the Orchestra and Choir of the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, the Orchestra of the University of Liège, the Young Tsakalov Symphony Orchestra of Ioannina.

He was the director of the mixed children's choir of the Corfu Conservatory. For many years he was radio producer, a member of award committees such as the "Spyros Montsenigou" Award, member of examination committees of the Ministry of Education, speaker on music issues at conferences of the Municipality of Corfu and the Ministry of Culture. He was the chief musician of the "Spyros Samaras" Philharmonic, he was the founder and director of church choirs.

In the field of writing he has presented:

a) Music diary,

b) Practical Guitar Method,

c) reprints of lectures,

d) articles in the Corfiot press on music issues and

e) the unpublished till now Music Biographical Encyclopedia.