Stamatis Spanoudakis
Encyclopedia
Stamatis Spanoudakis - Σταμάτης Σπανουδάκης (born December 11 1948 (age 61) in Athens
, Greece
) is a Greek classical and new age
composer
. Early on he studied classical guitar
. He went through a pop music
phase, but then continued classical studies at the Würzburg
State Conservatory with Bertold Hummel
and later in Athens with Konstantinos Kydoniatis. Later on he took up Byzantine music
.
He was born in Athens, Greece. At a very early age, music became the most important part of his life. As a child, he first studied Classical Music (guitar and theory) with professor Haralampos Ekmektsoglou. Then, as a teenager in the sixties and the seventies, he played bass guitar and keyboards in a number of bands in Athens, Paris and finally, London, where he lived for a number of years and recorded his first albums.
After that, Classical music won him over again, so he decided to return to his studies of composition, at first in Wurzburg, Germany, with professor Bertold Hummel
and then back in Athens with professor Konstantinos Kydoniatis.
He was then attracted to his third love - Byzantine Music
, which led him to Greek songwriting and instrumental music.
Since then he has been consciously trying to reconcile his three musical influences (Rock, Classical and Byzantine), in his music.
He has also composed the music for many blockbuster films in Greece, Germany and Italy, music for theater and television and has so far recorded more than fifty albums.
Since 1995, he has concentrated almost exclusively on instrumental music, based on Greek historical or religious themes. Music that has an unprecedented commercial appeal, with all his records turning gold and platinum, with minimum effort and very rare appearances in public.
His framework is given by the composer himself in the following verses (Alexander II, Roads you didn't Walk):
Stamatis lives in a quiet suburb with his wife Dori and their four dogs. He has his own studio (Stam Studio) where he records his music, being the composer, arranger, producer, performer and sound engineer of his work.
Some of his works:
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
) is a Greek classical and new age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
. Early on he studied classical guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
. He went through a pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
phase, but then continued classical studies at the Würzburg
Würzburg
Würzburg is a city in the region of Franconia which lies in the northern tip of Bavaria, Germany. Located at the Main River, it is the capital of the Regierungsbezirk Lower Franconia. The regional dialect is Franconian....
State Conservatory with Bertold Hummel
Bertold Hummel
Bertold Hummel was a German composer of modern classical music.- Life :Bertold Hummel was born November 27, 1925 in Hüfingen . He studied at the Academy of Music in Freiburg from 1947 to 1954, taking composition with Harald Genzmer, and cello with Atis Teichmanis...
and later in Athens with Konstantinos Kydoniatis. Later on he took up Byzantine music
Byzantine music
Byzantine music is the music of the Byzantine Empire composed to Greek texts as ceremonial, festival, or church music. Greek and foreign historians agree that the ecclesiastical tones and in general the whole system of Byzantine music is closely related to the ancient Greek system...
.
Biography
(translated in English from a text offered by the composer himself)He was born in Athens, Greece. At a very early age, music became the most important part of his life. As a child, he first studied Classical Music (guitar and theory) with professor Haralampos Ekmektsoglou. Then, as a teenager in the sixties and the seventies, he played bass guitar and keyboards in a number of bands in Athens, Paris and finally, London, where he lived for a number of years and recorded his first albums.
After that, Classical music won him over again, so he decided to return to his studies of composition, at first in Wurzburg, Germany, with professor Bertold Hummel
Bertold Hummel
Bertold Hummel was a German composer of modern classical music.- Life :Bertold Hummel was born November 27, 1925 in Hüfingen . He studied at the Academy of Music in Freiburg from 1947 to 1954, taking composition with Harald Genzmer, and cello with Atis Teichmanis...
and then back in Athens with professor Konstantinos Kydoniatis.
He was then attracted to his third love - Byzantine Music
Byzantine music
Byzantine music is the music of the Byzantine Empire composed to Greek texts as ceremonial, festival, or church music. Greek and foreign historians agree that the ecclesiastical tones and in general the whole system of Byzantine music is closely related to the ancient Greek system...
, which led him to Greek songwriting and instrumental music.
Since then he has been consciously trying to reconcile his three musical influences (Rock, Classical and Byzantine), in his music.
Works / Discography
He has written numerous hit songs (both the music and the lyrics) for most of the major contemporary Greek singers.He has also composed the music for many blockbuster films in Greece, Germany and Italy, music for theater and television and has so far recorded more than fifty albums.
Since 1995, he has concentrated almost exclusively on instrumental music, based on Greek historical or religious themes. Music that has an unprecedented commercial appeal, with all his records turning gold and platinum, with minimum effort and very rare appearances in public.
His framework is given by the composer himself in the following verses (Alexander II, Roads you didn't Walk):
Ζωή φωτιά κι ανάσταση
φυλή σε άλλη διάσταση
μητέρα μου αληθινή
Ελλάδα μου είσαι εσύ
Life fire and resurection
Tribe in another dimension
My true mother
It's you my Greece
Stamatis lives in a quiet suburb with his wife Dori and their four dogs. He has his own studio (Stam Studio) where he records his music, being the composer, arranger, producer, performer and sound engineer of his work.
Some of his works:
| Album/CD title | Published by | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Κοντραμπάντο - Ελευθερία Αρβανιτάκη ( Contrabando - Eleftheria Arvanitaki Eleftheria Arvanitaki Eleftheria Arvanitaki is a Greek folk singer. She originates from the island of Icaria... ) |
Lyra | 1986 |
| Πέτρινα Χρόνια - OST ( Years of Stone ) |
Lyra | 1987 |
| Και μπήκαμε στα χρόνια - Ελένη Βιτάλη ( And we came into the years - Eleni Vitali ) |
CBS/Sony Music | 1988 |
| Δυό Βήματα απ' την Άμμο - Άλκηστη Πρωτοψάλτη ( Two Steps from the Sand - Alkistis Protopsalti Alkistis Protopsalti Alkistis Protopsalti , born as Alkistis Sevasti Attikuzel ) is a Greek singer.- Early life :Alkistis Protopsalti was born in 18 October 1954 in Alexandria, Egypt by Egyptiot parents.... ) |
Polydor | 1989 |
| Τανιράμα - Ελευθερία Αρβανιτάκη ( Tanirama - Eleftheria Arvanitaki Eleftheria Arvanitaki Eleftheria Arvanitaki is a Greek folk singer. She originates from the island of Icaria... ) |
Polydor | 1989 |
| Ημέρα Τρίτη - Μανώλης Μητσιάς ( Third Day - Manolis Mitsias ) |
CBS/Sony Music | 1990 |
| Επαφή - Γιάννης Πάριος ( Touch - Yiannis Parios ) |
Minos EMI | 1992 |
| Αλέξανδρος - Το Παραμύθι Της Ανατολής, Το Όνειρο Της Δύσης ( Alexander - The Fairy-tale of the East, The Dream of the West ) |
FM Records | 1994 |
| Εαρινή Ώρα ( Spring Time ) |
FM Records | 1996 |
| Το Δάκρυ Του Ιωάννη ( John's Tear ) |
Stam Studio | 1996 |
| Μαρμαρωμένος Βασιληάς ( The Marble/Pertified King ) |
Stam Studio | 1998 |
| Για Την Σμύρνη ( For Smyrna ) |
Stam Studio | 2001 |
| Κομμάτι Απ' Την Ψυχή Μου ( A Piece of My Heart ) |
Stam Studio | 2003 |
| Νύφες (movie soundtrack) ( Brides ) |
Stam Studio | 2004 |
| LIVE AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL (London) | Heaven Music | 2006 |
| Αλέξανδρος ΙΙ - Δρόμοι που δεν περπάτησες ( Alexander II - Roads You didn't Walk ) |
Lyra | 2008 |
| Live in China (Oct 20, 2007) | Sony Music | 2009 |