Compositions
The compositional work of Nicolas Costantinou includes both original works and creative re-imaginings of the classical repertoire. He has written original compositions for piano, as well as cadenzas and eingänge for works by W. A. Mozart, aiming to highlight the stylistic and rhetorical qualities of the Classical idiom through a contemporary and personal perspective.
Alongside this, he has produced transcriptions of string quartets, string quintets, and symphonic works for piano four hands, transferring symphonic thinking into more compact and flexible forms while preserving the polyphonic richness and dramatic structure of the originals.
His compositional style is predominantly humorous, often playful and ironic, with a strong emphasis on surprise, theatricality, and direct communication with both performers and audiences.
The work Five X Five, written for 25 pianists at a single piano, consists of a series of radically contrasting and free variations based on the well-known Happy Birthday, constructed through the inversion of its intervals. Each variation functions as an independent episode, transporting the listener through different eras, places, and musical genres, transforming a universally familiar melody into a space of unexpected imagination. The work was awarded a Guinness World Record in the category “most pianists at one piano.”
The work For Who? is a comic paraphrase of Für Elise, one of the most beloved yet also most overexposed pieces in the repertoire. Through a narrative and playful approach, the work humorously recounts the adventures of this iconic young lady across different parts of the world, her conquests, and her growing frustration with the burdens of excessive fame. For Who? has been performed by the Anderson & Roe Duo in Cyprus and internationally.
For further information, performance materials, and scores, please contact via the Contact form on the website.
List of compositions
Original works
Five X Five
for twenty-five pianists on one piano
Date of composition: 2019
First Performance: 5 July 2023, CyBC, Nicosia Cyprus
Duration: 7 minutes
Hymn to Cyprus
for chorus and orchestra
Date of composition: 2003
Duration: 1 minute
For Who?
for two pianos
Date of composition: 2000-2001
First Performance: 21 September 2009, Larnaca Municipal Theatre, Cyprus
Cadenzas and Eingänge
W. A. Mozart
– Cadenzas to Piano Concerto in B-flat major, KV 456
– Eingang to the third movement of Piano Concerto in C major, KV 467
– Extemporizations and Eingang to Piano Concerto in D minor, KV 466
– Cadenzas to Piano Concerto in C major, KV 503
– Extemporizations and Eingang to Piano Quartet in G minor, KV 478
– Extemporizations and Eingang to Piano Quartet in E-flat major, KV 493
L. V. Beethoven
– Extemporizations to Rondo in G major, for violin and piano, WoO 41
Arrangements
L. V. Beethoven
– Overture to Coriolanus, for piano duet
– Overture to Egmont, for piano duet
J. Brahms
– I movement from String Quintet in F minor, Op. 88, for piano duet
W. A. Mozart
– String Quartet in B-flat major, KV 458 “Jagd”, for piano duet