Striking a Greek Chord at CSUN

Cal State Northridge’s impressive guitar concert series comes to a close Saturday with noted guitarist Eleftheria Kotzia, a commanding Greek musician.

Kotzia has traveled the world, while staying true to her Greek heritage.

That attitude is borne out in her discography, which began on a high note with the 1989 album “The Blue Guitar,” featuring the world premiere recording of the late Sir Michael Tippett’s Guitar Sonata and garnering the “Critic’s Choice Recording of the Year” award from Gramophone magazine. Her second recording, “Mediterraneo,” focuses on music with a Greek pedigree. For her third recording, last year’s “La guitarra latina” (Chandos), the music is largely from lesser-known but dazzling Latin American composers.

“It occurred to me at some point that we associate very strongly the guitar with Spain and South America,” she said in a recent interview. “But at some point, it occurred to me that my own country had almost the same level of variety and richness.”

At Northridge, the program promises to be a delicate balance of cultural elements. Bowing to her native country, Kotzia will perform music by Greek composer Evangelos Boudounis, as well as arrangements of traditional Greek dances. There also will be a respectful dose of Bach and Hector Ayala’s “South American Suite” from her recent CD. Closer to home, she will perform a piece based on American tunes by Greg Newton, a guitarist and composer she met in London who now teaches at CSUN.

“There are three movements--’Liberty,’ ‘Spirit’ and ‘Hope,’ ” she said. “They’re all based on American music. It’s a great, fun piece, really. I’m happy to play this, particularly in the area that Greg teaches and lives and works.”

Through her work and musical advocacy, Kotzia has helped to expand the repertoire options for the guitar and satisfied her own internal explorer instinct.

BE THERE

Eleftheria Kotzia performs Saturday at 8 p.m. in the Recital Hall at Cal State Northridge, 18111 Nordhoff St. Tickets: $12. (818) 677-3180.