Matthaios Tsahouridis ( Greek: Ματθαίος Τσαχουρίδης; born 18 September 1978) is a

Pontic Greek Pontic Greek ( pnt, Ποντιακόν λαλίαν, or ; el, Ποντιακή διάλεκτος, ; tr, Rumca) is a variety of Modern Greek indigenous to the Pontus region on the southern shores of the Black Sea, northeastern Anatolia, ...

musician and composer who plays a range of stringed musical instruments. He was born in Veria, Greece, and started performing music at age 9. In both Greece and Turkey he is currently considered to be the best

Pontic lyra Pontic, from the Greek ''pontos'' (, ), or "sea", may refer to: The Black Sea Places * The Pontic colonies, on its northern shores * Pontus (region), a region on its southern shores * The Pontic–Caspian steppe, steppelands stretching from nor ...

(or Kemençe) violinist; he is lauded for his wide range of styles, innovation and fusion with other ethnic performers from around the globe. Matthaios is sometimes also referred to as Makos or simply Makoulis. Tsahouridis plays string instruments such as the violin, laghouto (Greek lute), oud, the Greek bouzouki, guitar, the Persian kamancheh, the Afghan rubab, as well as the Afghan and the Uzbek ghichaks.

Education

Tsahouridis won the first prize in a Pan-Hellenic Music Competition organized by the

Greek Ministry of Education The Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs ( el, Υπουργείο Παιδείας και Θρησκευμάτων; Υ.ΠΑΙ.Θ.) is a government department of Greece. One of the oldest ministries, established in 1833, it is responsible ...

at the Athens Concert Hall (Megaron Mousikis) in 1996. In 1997, he was awarded a scholarship by Panteleimon and Iera Mitropolis Verias, in order to continue his music studies in London. In 2001 Tsahouridis completed his bachelor's degree in Music Studies and his Masters in

Ethnomusicology Ethnomusicology is the study of music from the cultural and social aspects of the people who make it. It encompasses distinct theoretical and methodical approaches that emphasize cultural, social, material, cognitive, biological, and other dim ...

at Goldsmiths College, University of London. In 2003 he was awarded a scholarship by the 'Michael Marks Charitable Trust' for his Doctoral research in the field of Performance Practice. He attained his PhD in 2007, titled: 'The

in contemporary Greece', the first doctorate in the U.K. referring to the performance of non-western music cultures.

Performances

He performed the Pontic lyra at WOMAD music festival in Reading (2001, 2005), WOMEX music festival in Rotterdam (2001), Roskilder Rock festival (2002), in Teatro Massimo for UNESCO (Palermo Opera House, Italy 2002), at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

(2002) and at the Purcell Room in London's Southbank Arts Centre. He performed the

for

BBC Radio 3 BBC Radio 3 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It replaced the BBC Third Programme in 1967 and broadcasts classical music and opera, with jazz, world music, Radio drama, drama, High culture, culture and the arts ...

, as well as in many other BBC radio programmes. He was one of the performers of the main music theme of the BBC for the Olympic Games of Athens with the opera band Amici and Prague Symphony Orchestra. He also collaborated with Ostad Ardeshir Kamkar on the Persian kamancheh in Tehran in 2004. In 2005, he performed at Herodus Atticus Theatre in

Acropolis An acropolis was the settlement of an upper part of an ancient Greek city, especially a citadel, and frequently a hill with precipitous sides, mainly chosen for purposes of defense. The term is typically used to refer to the Acropolis of Athens, ...

, Athens, accompanied by ERT Contemporary Music Orchestra in the opening ceremony of the

Athens Festival Athens – Epidaurus Festival is an annual arts festival that takes place in Athens and Epidaurus, from May to October. It is one of the most famous festivals in Greece. The festival includes musical, theatrical and other cultural events. Histor ...

and in June 2005 he performed in the Oratorio ‘Kosmas o Aitolos' (by Mimis Plessas) in Veria, Greece. In 2006 Matthaios was the co-artistic director of the opening ceremony for the International Byzantine Congress of London with Lady Marina Marks as Chairman and

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

as patron. In March 2007 he performed at the London Porchester Hall(Bayswater) with

Cat Stevens Yusuf Islam (born Steven Demetre Georgiou; ), commonly known by his stage names Cat Stevens, Yusuf, and Yusuf / Cat Stevens, is a British singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His musical style consists of folk, pop, rock, and, later in ...

(Yusuf Islam). In 2010 he performed on the Kadirga Festival in the Pontic Mountains of Trabzon, Turkey. Since then he has coöperated with multiple local Pontic Greek musicians from Turkey.

Political View

Matthaios Tsahouridis recognizes the Greek genocide - as virtually all Pontic Greeks outside Turkey do - which led Turkish nationalists to criticize football club Trabzonspor for inviting him to perform during the team's 2022 championship celebrations. Due to this pressure, Tsahouridis and his friend

Apolas Lermi Abdurrahman Lermi (born 1986), better known as Apolas Lermi, is a Turkish folksinger and musician. Biography He was born in Tonya, Turkey. His real name is Abdurrahman Lermi. Apolas is a nickname his friends gave to him and has been used for h ...

cancelled their performance, while clearly stating their support for the team. Trabzonspor's championship celebrations nonetheless got a Greek 'silver lining', as key players Manolis Siopis and Anastasios Bakasetas were prominently featured, dancing to traditional Greek and local Pontic music - which was received with applause from the fans.

References

External links

Matthaios Tsahouridis' Official WebsiteMatthaios Tsahouridis
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tsahouridis, Matthaios 1978 births Living people Greek musicians Greek folk musicians People from Veria