Odysseas Toumazou Trio

Original compositions influenced by classical, jazz, traditional Greek and Cypriot music

Summer Jazz Music Concert Series

The Odysseas Toumazou Trio is a newly formed project dedicated to performing original compositions and arrangements, shaped by the composer’s Cypriot background. The trio will perform for the first time at Technopolis 20 stage, on Thursday, 23rd of August 2018, at 8:30pm.

Odysseas’s creations are influenced by jazz, classical, traditional Greek and Cypriot and a tinge of Indian classical music, thus creating a unique sound catering to a wide array of audiences with varied tastes in music. Improvisation is a key element of Odysseas’s music, allowing for environment and audience alike to subtly influence the direction, the sound, and consequently the journey one embarks on in tandem with Odysseas and his fellow musicians.

With Odysseas Toumazou on guitar, Ioannis Vafeas on drums and Andreas Rodosthenous on electric bass.

Entrance: 10 euro
Reservations are necessary at 70002420 (calls only)
Sponsor: Cyprus Tourism Organisation

A few words about the musicians
Odysseas Toumazou was born in Cyprus in 1989. At the age of 6 he started playing classical piano and classical guitar. It was only a few years later that he switched to electric guitar, while at the same time he got private lessons in jazz guitar, composition and jazz theory. His career started from an early age, working as a session musician and performing live on TV and radio shows with famous Greek artists, where he gained a lot of experience playing in different styles and doing studio work. In 2011 he came to the Netherlands to study Jazz Guitar at the Conservatory of Amsterdam under the guidance of great musicians such as Martijn van Iterson, Maarten van der Grinten and Jesse van Ruller. He also attended masterclasses from innovative players such as of Scott Henderson, Lage Lund, Peter Bernstein, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Gilad Hekselman and Brad Mehldau. During his studies in Amsterdam Odysseas toured through Europe (Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Cyprus) with many bands in various projects. Odysseus worked at the True School of Music in India, having been head of the guitar department since 2015 until 2017 that he returned in Cyprus. Since 2015 Odysseas is composing his own music and he is currently recording his own album. Besides being a musician, Odysseas has experience in teaching guitar and music theory.

Ioannis Vafeas 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. Since 2009 he is a member of the faculty in the Department of Music in the University of Nicosia. 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. His Master’s thesis was titled “Rhythm, History, Development and Influence on the twentieth Century Music”. Ioannis attended festivals and Venues in Poland, England, Lebanon, Kuwait, Italy, the U.S., Greece and Serbia and shared the stage with great artists the Cyprus Symphony Orchestra, the Moscow Symphony Orchestra and others. 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 Zyldjian Cymbals since 2009. www.ioannisvafeas.com

Andreas Rodosthenous was born in Limassol, Cyprus in 1977. He started music by playing the electric and acoustic guitar. At the age of sixteen he started playing the electric bass. He studied at the Rotterdam's Conservatory in Holland, where he had the opportunity to perform with Annaelis DeJong, Thierry Castel, Ilja Reijngoud, in many theatres and jazz clubs such as Bim Haus, Dizzy jazz club, Theater de Evenaar etc. Andreas collaborated and recorded with the famous guitar player Christoforos Krokidis and singer Vasilis Papakostantinou in Greece. He also released the digital cd ‘Somplicity’ with his own music, with George Morfitis on piano, Alkis Agathocleous on ney and Stelios Xydias on percussion. He performed in important festival such as Fusion Festival in Germany, EUNIC jazz festival in Berlin, Technopolis Jazz festival in Athens and music:LX in Luxembourg.