Spyros Koliavasilis

About the Artist

Spyros Koliavasilis is a gifted vocalist and multi-instrumentalist performer. He is a recognized expert in traditional Greek music with a passion for music that extends to other genres, such as ethno-jazz and other types of world music. His true passion, however, is Rebetiko, known as Greek blues, and Smyrneika, the music of the Asia Minor region (“Mikrasia”). Born in Attiki, Greece, he started his music career playing oboe and bassoon before discovering his love for the Oud and Cappadocian Lyra.  He is expert in Makam Theory and modular scales and plays music from his areas of expertise, original arrangements, and plays more than 18 instruments including Oud, Lyra, Cretan Lyra, Kemane (Cappadocian Lyra), Laouto, Laouto-guitar, Baglama, Mandocello, a variety of fretless guitars, and more. He performs regularly at the Washington Folklife Festival and other venues in the Washington DC Metropolitan area. He also has performed for organizations such as the Greek Archdiocese of North America for commemorative events, and Washington DC area cultural and philanthropic organizations, the Embassies of Greece, Cyprus, and the EU, the University of Maryland, and the US Library of Congress. He has many music projects going on at any one time, including rebetiko/smyrneiko duet Melos, rebetiko and traditional Greek and Island music (nissiotika) band Mortes, Greek traditional music band Karpouzi Trio, Greek-Turkish rebetiko group DC Café Aman, ethno-jazz group Trela, oud trio Tri-Oud, and new projects are always in development, including a percussion-heavy and Mediterranean-infused psychadelic funk band.  Demonstrating his musical versatility, Spyros performs a wide array of musical genres. For example, he and his protégé, Niko, perform together in the duet known as Melos, which means melody in Greek. The music they feature is called Rebetiko an important Greek musical genre. Started by the people known as the Rebetis – the downtrodden castaways of Peiraeus and Athens – Rebetiko is characterized by poignant and melancholic expressions of poverty, despair, disappointment, hope, and love.  It gained popularity among marginalized communities, such as refugees and the urban working class of the 1920s and 1930s, and that is how it came to be known as the Greek blues. Rebetiko is now a Greek national treasure – recognized and protected by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage to Humanity. Spyros and Niko perform on the Laouto-guitar and Bouzouki. Rebetiko is typically performed with the pairing of a Bouzouki and Guitar and on occasion, a Bouzouki and Laouto. Spyros is probably the only musician that performs Rebetiko with a customized, hybrid Laouto-guitar in the manouche style – a cross between a Mandocello and Laouto. Spyro prefers this unique instrument for the better harmony and richer tones he achieves with it.  Spyros is also known for his expertise in the Asia Minor style of music often called Smyrneika or music of Constantinople, which he performs with the Cappadocian Lyra and the Oud. While the Oud is Spyro's most beloved instrument, the Cappadocian Lyra (Kemane) is a not distant second favorite. Mr. Koliavasilis is likely the sole performer worldwide of the 7-course Cappadocian Lyre, or kemane, a unique instrument he co-designed over six years with a luthier. Commonly a four-stringed instrument, the kemane has a petite, pear-shaped body and short neck, is played with a bow and is known for its resonant tones. Traditionally, it was used in Cappadocian Greek folk music of Cappadocia, Turkey. It influenced music of the late Ottoman Empire and persists in Greek and Turkish folk traditions today. Mr. Koliavasilis' innovation expands the instrument's capabilities, offering a violin-like versatility while preserving Cappadocian and Black Sea musical heritage.  He plays other genres of traditional Greek music including songs from the islands, different regions of Greece (e.g. from Crete, Ikaria, Thrace) and a wide variety of Greek folk (laika) music.  Adding to that, he plays Mediterranean-infused ethno jazz world music with the duo, Trela, and is developing a percussion-heavy world music funk band.  That's a work in progress to definitely stay tuned for!     

Artist's Statement

Spyros' performances with oud and Cappadocian Lyre (kemane), combined with his velvety vocals, are a rare treasure and memorable experience because whether he's playing jazz or a traditional Greek song, his artistry and years of experience come through distinguishing him as a true musician and artist.  His music blends traditional elements along with timeless improvisations and contemporary sounds that transport you to another time and place.