KASSIA
«OPERA»

Byzantine composer and poet Saint Kassiani was born in Constantinople in the 9th century. She is considered to be the first female composer on the European continent. Her works played a significant role in music history, most specifically in the development of European church music. St. Kassiani was an emancipated woman; she refused the marriage proposal of the emperor Theophilus and founded her women’s monastery, where she practiced poetry, music and art with other female artists. With her self-determined and extraordinary life, St. Kassiani appears as one of the earliest feminist figures of all time. Together with his early music ensemble Musica Sequenza, Burak Özdemir takes this power woman as the starting point for his chamber opera; KASSIA.

St. Kassiani’s music breaks today both cultural and geographical borders. Her original scores are now reimagined by composer and early music specialist Burak Özdemir. The work is orchestrated for solo voice (soprano) and a chamber orchestra of 10 musicians. Berlin-based early music ensemble Musica Sequenza performs the work on period instruments of the 9th century; byzantine kamancheh, gut strings, percussions, byzantine flutes, organ, lute and harp.

The work is based on St. Kassiani’s original compositions, poems and her unique biography. Her art was heavily inspired by the eastern territories of Europe, where patriarchal and national politics were in constant crisis for centuries. Today, both Poland and Turkey are on the verge of leaving the Istanbul Convention for Women’s Rights in Europe. The work aims to reinterrogate Kassiani’s legacy as the „first feminist artist“ in order to re-speak her voice on these highly sensitive socio-political topics.

KASSIA was initially developed in 2021 in collaboration with Women’s Museum Istanbul, kainkollektiv, as well as scholars, activists and artists from Germany, Poland and Turkey. Within the 2021/22 cultural season, the work has visited venues such as TAK Theater Berlin, Kampnagel Hamburg, Theater im Ballsaal Bonn and Ringlokschuppen Ruhr.

KASSIA PRODUCTION TEASER 

KASSIA ALBUM PODCAST

KASSIA RECORDING SESSION

KASSIA ALBUM TRAILER