Michael Messios Symmetry Band

A.Vafea Jazz Projects organises an exceptional jazz performance at Technopolis 20 in Paphos, on Sunday, 11th of June 2017 at 8:30pm, based on the rhythms of “Michael Messios Symmetry Band”. The members of the band are the brilliant bass player Michael Messios in collaboration with the saxophonist Charis Ioannou, the drummer Ioannis Vafeas and the pianist Marios Toumbas.

All four members of the band are graduates of the Berklee College of Music in Boston MA, and they hold a Master’s Degree in Jazz Music. They are also instructors of Jazz Music at Universities in Cyprus. They perform regularly in festivals and Concert Halls in Cyprus and all over Europe: Athens Technopolis Jazz festival, “B flat Jazz Club” in Berlin and at “Altes Phandhau” in Cologne Germany in 2016, as well as in all the major jazz festivals of the island (Paradise jazz festival, AglaJazz festival, Aphrodite Hills Jazz festival, Windcraft Jazz festival and the World music festival at Rialto theatre). They have numerous collaborations in cd’s, recordings and theatre productions.

The Symmetry Band was created after many years of collaboration and friendship between the four artists and they present compositions of the band leader, Michael Messios, which is a mixture of strong melodies and complex rhythms. His compositions include influences from both traditional and contemporary jazz music, enriched with elements from Ethnic and Mediterranean Music.

Entrance: 10 euro
Reservations necessary at 70002420

A few words about the musicians

MICHALIS MESSIOS (Bass)
Michael Messios is a brilliant bassist. He attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston MA with a scholarship. He studied music composition, and jazz performance. His return in Cyprus finds him busy in the music industry as a member in various ensembles. The Petsteppers, Charis Ioannou Trio, Cyprus big band, Tasso’s Stylianou Trio, where he performs and composes. He has participated in major Jazz Festivals like the Krakow Jazz Festival in Bologna, the Kuwait Jazz Festival, Mitrovica Jazz Festival in Serbia, the Crete Jazz Festival and played in prestigious jazz clubs like the VORTEX in London. He often performs in his homeland Cyprus in many festivals like the KYPRIA Festival, AglaJazz Festival, Pomos Festival and the Dogstock. He regularly performs in many Concert Halls in Cyprus and abroad and performs regularly in major Jazz clubs in Cyprus. He has numerous important collaborations in the global jazz scene like with Tony Lakatos, Gilad Atzmon, Janush Muniac, Mamelo Gaitanopoulos and Chris Byars. The Symmetry Band performs Michael Messios’ compositions only. His compositions are influenced by Contemporary and traditional Jazz and are distinguished and characterized by their strong melody, harmony, complicated rhythms and motives. Michalis is an endorsed artist of the famous music instrument company ‘‘ASHDOWN AMPS''.

CHARIS IOANNOU (Sax)
Charis Ioannou was born in Nicosia, Cyprus in 1976. In 1997 he was enrolled at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he studied saxophone performance and Jazz Composition. Charis won the Woodwind Achievement Award in the last year of his studies in Boston and in 2001, after graduation, he moved to New York where he stayed for three years. While in New York, Charis earned his Master’s Degree in performance from the New York University and in the meantime performed and taught around the state. Charis left the United States in 2005 and moved back to Cyprus.
Collaborations: The return to his homeland country found Charis collaborating with various musicians and appearing in all the major clubs and festivals around Cyprus as well as various venues around the world including performances in Greece, Kuwait, Germany, Lebanon, Kazakhstan, Poland, Serbia, Spain, England, Italy, Luxembourg, Belgium, Holland and the U.S.A. Charis has also collaborated with the American Embassy in Cyprus in a Bi-Communal Jazz program called Jazz Futures through which he has appealed all over Cyprus performing alongside the group of Ari Roland and Chris Byars for 6 years during the period 2007-2013.
Awards: In 2015 he led BopCy, a quartet with all Cypriot musicians and won the 2nd place in the first Greek Jazz Competition held in Athens in the same year and appeared in Syros as part of the International Jazz Day 2015.
Academic Path: Charis is currently teaching the saxophone and the jazz idiom at the University of Nicosia as well as making guest faculty appearances in workshops held in Italy, Lebanon and Greece and continuing to perform and record as a leader as well as a sideman in Cyprus and abroad.

IOANNIS VAFEAS (Drums)
Ioannis Vafeas (www.ioannisvafeas.com) was born in Cyprus in 1970 and currently leaves in Nicosia. He performs regularly in festivals and Concert Halls in his homeland all over Europe. He has numerous collaborations in cd’s, recordings and theatre productions.
Studies: He studied Jazz at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. After his graduation he enrolled at the Master’s program of the Boston’s Conservatory from where he graduated in 1998 with a Master’s Degree in Jazz Studies.
Collaborations: The years that followed found Ioannis busy in the music industry performing, recording and teaching music. He has performed music of different styles and participated in numerous cd’s, recordings, theatre productions and films always distinguished by his personal technic and style. Ioannis attended festivals and Venues in Germany, Poland, England, Lebanon, Kuwait, Italy, the U.S., Greece and Serbia and shared the stage with great artists and Symphony Orchestras.
Teaching: His teaching experience started back in 1998 with private drum lessons at the Lynn College of Music. Since 2002 Ioannis is teaching the music idiom in public schools. He is also a member of the faculty of the University of Nicosia since 2009. His credits also include drum seminars on soiling and brush playing in various Universities and Music Schools. Ioannis is endorsing the Zildjian Cymbals since 2009.

MARIOS TOUMBAS (pianist)
Studies: Jazz pianist Marios Toumbas has a Bachelor of Music, Cum Laude, in Music Synthesis (Berklee College of Music, Boston, MA) and a Master of Music with Honors in Jazz Studies (New England Conservatory of Music, Boston, MA). His return to Cyprus found Marios collaborating with various musicians and appearing in all the major clubs and festivals around Cyprus as well as various venues around the world.
Collaborations: He was a student of international renowned jazz educator Charlie Banacos and the well-known pianist Danilo Perez. He has performed all over the world with famous jazz musicians such as, bassist Anthony Jackson (creator of the 6-string el.Bass), and saxophonist Tony Lakatos and guitarists Jeff Richman and Brett Garsed. He has also performed at international Jazz festivals such as the Montreal Jazz Festival in Canada, the Krakow Jazz Festival in Poland and the Blues North City festival in Serbia. He has played concerts at the Royal Festival Hall in London and Sun City Music Hall in Johannesburg South Africa.
Academic Path: He has been an instructor of Jazz Music at the European University Cyprus since 2009.

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