Generations: Great Music / Family Fun

Festival Program

Generations, the music festival that brings together different generations, returns to the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) for a third year, on Saturday, May 20, and Sunday, May 21!

Generations was first launched in 2017, to then make a powerful and extremely successful comeback in 2022. This year it’s back again, at Stavros Niarchos Park, featuring a rich and diverse program, for a festival rendezvous not to be missed by young and old alike!

From 11.00 in the morning until late into the sunset, the SNFCC will be filled with activities in all its spaces, the festival's focus being the Great Lawn: From the Playgrounds and the Water Jets to the Mediterranean Garden, the Outdoor Games Area, the Dome and, of course, the Canal, a variety of options will be available to children and their parents. Adults will have the opportunity to introduce the young to the musical choices of two legendary DJs — this year’s headliners of the Generations festival are Jazzie B of the Soul II Soul and Norman Jay! — at two unforgettable open-air parties that will start in the morning at the Great Lawn: a total of 10 DJ sets, also featuring Blend Mishkin & BNC, Black Athena, Palov, RSN, Dimitris Lilis, Terra Exotica, Dr. Orange, and Afrogirl, will be hosted in front of the iconic boombox stage, specially designed for the festival.

And the choices don’t end there: children will be able to choose among a multitude of activities over the course of an unforgettable two-day event filled with surprises at Stavros Niarchos Park.

Children’s faces will become colorful with face painting; young and old will dance away wearing colorful hoops at the hoop dance; all together will play among giant soap bubbles, stilt walkers and acrobats; they will be arranged into original orchestras, paint and plant and kayak, play ball games, twister and water balloon games; and they will capture their most amazing moments using fun props at the Generations’ photo booth.

Generations, a genuine celebration for the entire family and a standing Athens rendezvous for a colorful weekend at the Park, filled with laughter and carefreeness, is staged with free admission thanks to a grant of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF).

DJs at Stavros Niarchos Park

At Generations, the DJ sets start at 11.00 a.m. and end with the appearance of the headliners at around sundown. A rhythmic lineup ideally poised to introduce the young to the music of adults, and to prompt families to dance together on the lawn of their favorite Park.

This year's headliners are two legendary British DJs, Jazzie B and Norman Jay, while the lineup also features eight distinct DJ sets by Blend Mishkin & BNC, Black Athena, Palov, RSN, Dimitris Lilis, Terra Exotica, Dr. Orange, and Afrogirl.

NORMAN JAY

Saturday, May 20, 19.30–21.30, Great Lawn, Stavros Niarchos Park

Few DJs have been as influential in the music scene of Great Britain over the past 50 years as Norman Jay. And that's because he went well beyond simply choosing tracks for people to have a good time at parties. Well, he did that too, quite successfully indeed, building his own System System called Good Times; but most importantly, he invented a brand-new scene under the code name “Rare Groove.” This is the term that Norman Jay used to describe the music he played on his definitive show on (then pirate) radio station KISS FM: a soulful mix of funk, disco, soul and jazz.

One of its components was the music brought over to Great Britain from the West Indies by his parents’ generation. Another was the influence of the African American musical tradition, which he got to know well during his frequent trips to New York in the late ’70s. These were the key ingredients of Norman Jay’s musical proposal and legendary performances at the annual Carnival of Notting Hill, the neighborhood of London where he was born and raised to then become its icon. 

Along the way, Norman Jay piled up a radio track record of thousands of hours on air; set up the British acid jazz scene together with Gilles Peterson; released his electrifying Good Times compilations and remixes that became hugely popular (as in Shapeshifters’ “Lola’s Theme”); launched and closed down several clubs; watched everything around him change in London — but his groove remains the same.

JAZZIE B

Sunday, May 21, 18.30–20.30, Great Lawn, Stavros Niarchos Park

It was 1988, and Great Britain was living the high point of the electronica dance revolution and the “Second Summer of Love.” Soul II Soul found themselves in the spotlight, offering two of the period's anthems, “Keep On Movin’” and “Back To Life (However Do You Want Me),” combining the happenings of the parties in London warehouses with the rich African-British musical tradition. 

Jazzie B, the ninth of ten immigrant children from Antigua of the Caribbean, was the orchestrator of the situation set up by Soul II Soul, based at the legendary Africa Centre in Covent Garden. A music producer, DJ, records salesman in Camden, founder of labels that circulated clothes and albums, he became a central figure of the cultural transition that changed the youth culture on the Island.

The rest is history. Soul II Soul have sold more than 10 million albums (with their hits being included in over 200 compilations), and given concerts at the most renowned venues around the world, including the Wembley Stadium. In 1990, they were awarded two Grammys, and even saw a “Soul II Soul Day” being established in the USA. Jazzie B continues to promote the vision of sound systems across the globe, with DJ sets, TV appearances and radio shows, and even starring in comic books. 

Saturday 20/05 
Sunday 21/05 

Free admission