When 15 musicians performed inside an active volcano, from dusk till dawn

26 August 2022, 17:21 | Updated: 26 August 2022, 17:25

In 2016, a newly-formed collective of Greek musicians gathered inside a volcanic crater to put on an unforgettable all-night performance...

The biggest crater you will find on the volcanic Greek island of Nisyros is the Stefanos crater. Branching up to almost 1,000 feet in diameter, it is one of the largest active hydrothermal craters in the world and a – quite literal – hotspot for intrepid tourists wanting to walk across an active volcano.

Although Nisyros’ last eruptive activity was in 1888, the island is still an active volcano, with several hot springs, boiling mud pools and gas vents. Tourists are advised not to walk across the crater during sweltering summer days due to the high temperatures that can be reached.

Due to the varying thickness of the craters surface, tourists have reported that when standing still for too long on Stefanos, they have found themselves sinking, and at mercy to the boiling water beneath.

But in August 2018, a group of 15 musicians dared not only to stand in the crater for 10 and a half hours, but to also perform, creating an improvisational piece amidst the lunar-like landscape...

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Titled, ‘634 Minutes Inside a Volcano’, the musical project took place from 7.58pm on 18 August 2016, until 6.32am the next morning, and was organised by the Athens arts centre, cafe six d.o.g.s, and the Onassis Cultural Center.

Under the glow of an August full moon, 15 musicians playing the clarinet, electric guitar, piano, synthesizer, oud (a lute-like fretless string instrument) and the kanonaki (a piano-like string instrument), descended onto the famed crater. You can listen to their music here.

The mainly Greek musicians were in their 20s and 30s, and came from backgrounds including classical, jazz, improvisational, and electronic. The majority of the performers only met each other for the first time at the soundcheck.

At the time of the unique concert, then 32-year-old guitarist Jannis Anastasakis told the New York Times, “I had the feeling I was playing on the moon.

“We couldn’t expect that the setting would be so inspiring.”

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The musical all-nighter attracted a 2,000-strong audience, many of whom stood at the crater’s edge, enjoying the beer and souvlaki that vendors had come down to sell.

A few more daring visitors joined the musicians on the crater, some moving between the performers to create their own personal mix of music.

The musicians were set up in a circle configuration, spaced with about 40 to 50 metres between them, each with a console and monitor in front of them to control what they heard.

The artists would later go on to describe how the music and the scenery together created a dream-like atmosphere.

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In reality, the atmosphere itself was thick and sulphurous, and at around midnight, fumaroles on the crater’s edge began releasing jets of gas.

Inhaling sulphur fumes can cause health issues, so signs warned visitors from staying on the crater for more than 60 minutes at a time, and the musicians took intermittent breaks to protect themselves.

Prior to the performance, the artistic director of six d.o.g.s, Konstantinos Dagritzikos, spent months forming the ensemble for this one-of-a-kind occasion, and spoke extensively to volcanologists to ensure the safety of his performers.

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On the night of the performance, various areas were cordoned off for safety, low-wattage LED lighting was added to the path down to the crater to prevent tripping, and a first-aid tent was set up should anything go wrong.

Dagritzikos told the New York Times on the day of the event: “[The setting] is completely unique, basically the closest you can get to the centre of the earth.

“And if you realise where you are, that around those walls lava erupted 20,000 years ago and this whole island was created, it’s just mind-blowing.”