Where did you grow up? Did you come from a musical family? Who were your early influences?
I grew up in Thessaloniki, the co-capital of Greece. It is a city with a deep cultural history. My whole family moved there to continue my classical guitar studies with the well-known classical guitarist, Mr. Costas Cotsiolis. There, I received my BA and Masters in Classical Guitar Performance with A’ honors. My background was all about classical music, there was no jazz at all. My family is not musical but my great-grandpa from my father’s side was the soloist of the Greek Orthodox church in his hometown. My love for jazz started when a group of jazz musicians from New York performed in Thessaloniki. After watching their performance, I fell in love. After that concert, I started getting involved in the jazz scene and all that Thessaloniki had to offer.
When did you choose NYC? How would you describe the NY scene compared to other places? Do you think it has changed at all from when you started?
When I received my master’s in musicology, I started looking for places abroad to go and study jazz vocals more seriously. My first stop was Amsterdam to check the vibes and their scene. I stayed there for 10 days. It was cool but all the musicians in Amsterdam that I met, recommended me to move to New York. They said NYC is the place to be if you want to study the art of jazz. So, my second stop was New York! Every day was a new jazz experience for me! I started studying with vocalists from NYC. My teachers, who I love and highly respect, helped me so much to understand this beautiful form of art.
NYC is well deserving of the title "Mecca of Arts!" Even the swing feeling in NYC differs from anywhere else in the world. I'm not quite sure how to explain it. Of course, there are great musicians around the globe but NYC musicians swing really hard and the energy on stage is different! I do think the music scene has changed a lot since I moved in here, but there are still plenty of musicians that keep traditional jazz alive.
What can you tell us about your album "What I Was For You: re.think"? Was it a different experience showcasing your guitar skills rather than your vocals?
"What I was for you: re.think" is a celebration of women! It’s me finding my voice as an artist. Every woman goes through phases in her life, and these different stages in my personal life inspired me to compose these tunes. The songs traverse a woman who is in love, a heartbroken woman, a homesick woman, and a woman who will be an aunt. A big part of my inspiration is my niece Ariadne, by whom I was inspired and composed a special lullaby.
This record showcases my background. I studied the art of classical guitar for years and during my time here, especially when playing Brazilian classical guitar tunes, cats would often compliment me on my guitar skills. I knew I had to find a way to do it. I started writing music for classical guitar adding some jazz flavor. I’m honored to have these mighty musicians playing on my solo guitar record that I self-produced. “Nereids” was co-composed with Richie Goods with collaboration from JD Allen and Devo D.
It is a different experience because vocals and guitar are two entirely different instruments - I can’t really compare. They both need daily practice to be on top of your game. To deliver these hard tunes of the great classical guitar repertoire, such as La Cathedral, Fuoco and El ultimo Canto - I practiced technique, scales, arpeggios, tremolo, articulation, etc every day for roughly four hours to gain the strength and ability to go to the studio and record them. Vocals demand lots of practice and dedication! When I was doing my first record with such giants of the jazz scene including Orrin Evans, Dwayne Burno, Rudy Royston, JD Allen, Miles Griffith, Daniel Sadownick, and Richie Goods, I recall finding myself often falling asleep on my piano practicing my voice!
You have performed all over the city and beyond but have appeared a few times at Neir's Tavern, sponsored by KEYED UP! - can you tell us about your experiences there? What can we expect from a Satuday afternoon show at Neir’s?
I love the vibes and the history of Neir’s Tavern. It’s been a month doing the gig there. The people are very nice - both staff and regular customers, the food is delicious, and an audience comes on Saturdays specifically to listen to live jazz! What else can you ask for? It’s a blessing! All of this is happening because of KEYED UP! which I’m so thankful for! My thanks also to Kim and Loy at Neir's who help run everything smoothly. You can expect me and my bandmates singing jazz standards and playing a few of my original tunes with my guitar on many Saturdays over the next few months.
Any touring/album/anything else you would like to promote?
During this time of the year, I’m more relaxed from my teaching job but still focused on continuing to write more music to hopefully go back into the studio and make a full album with only originals. I recently started a project with my own music. I also thoroughly enjoyed working in two shows with two incredible trumpet players, Antoine Drye and Duane Eubanks. I love the sound of a nylon string guitar combined with a trumpet. It’s unique and rare and I’m looking forward to exploring it more.
What are your experiences of KEYED UP! and the importance of supporting jazz in NYC?
It’s my first time working with KEYED UP! I would like to thank you so much for everything that you are doing to keep jazz alive! I know without you I wouldn’t be able to have this gig. I‘m so grateful to be working with such nice and generous people. Thank you!