Stamatis Kraounakis ( el, Σταμάτης Κραουνάκης) is a Greek music composer, music producer, lyricist, writer and director. He was born and lives in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

and has studied

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

Panteion University The Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences ( el, Πάντειον Πανεπιστήμιο Κοινωνικών και Πολιτικών Επιστημών), usually referred to simply as the Panteion University, is a university loc ...

. He has composed music for more than 40

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

s and 50

theatre play A play is a work of drama, usually consisting mostly of dialogue between characters and intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. The writer of a play is called a playwright. Plays are performed at a variety of levels, from ...

Biography

Kraounakis studied music with Klelia Terzakis and made his first appearance in 1978, writing the music for the album ''To Spiti Tou Agamemnona''. One year earlier he had made his debut in theatre, with the music for the performance ''Varieme'' (1977). In 1981 he made his first big collaboration, with the music for the album ''Skouriasmena Hilia'' (Σκουριασμένα χείλια) performed by Vicky Mosholiou. In Panteion University Kraounakis met the poet

Lina Nikolakopoulou Evangelia (Lina) Nikolakopoulou (Λίνα Νικολακοπούλου) is widely recognised as one of the foremost lyricists in Greece. She was born in Methana on 30 June 1958 and studied social and political sciences at the Panteion University i ...

, with whom he produced more than 80% of his work. In October 1985 they created and released the album ''Kikloforo Ki Oploforo'' with

Alkistis Protopsalti Alkistis Protopsalti ( el, Άλκηστις Πρωτοψάλτη), born as Alkistis Sevasti Attikuzel ( el, Άλκηστις Σεβαστή Αττικιουζέλ), is a Greek singer and songwriter. Life Alkistis Protopsalti was born in Alex ...

as leading singer. Since 1982 Kraounakis has collaborated with a number of important Greek singers, including Manolis Mitsias,

Dimitra Galani Dimitra Galani ( el, Δήμητρα Γαλανή) is a Greek singer and songwriter. Galani was born 1952 in Athens and began her musical career at the age of 16 providing vocals on several tracks of Dimos Moutsis and Nikos Gatsos on the album "A ...

Tania Tsanaklidou Soultana (Tania) Tsanaklidou ( el, Τάνια Τσανακλίδου, born 9 April 1952) is a Greek artist, both singer and actress, who represented Greece in the Eurovision Song Contest 1978. Biography Tania was born in Drama, Greece on 9 April ...

Eleftheria Arvanitaki Eleftheria Arvanitaki (Greek: Ελευθερία Αρβανιτάκη) (born 17 October 1957 in Piraeus) is a Greek folk singer. She originates from the island of Icaria. Arvanitaki has worked with important musicians, such as Cesária Évora, Ar ...

. He also introduced new singers through collaborations, including Kostas Makedonas,

Dimitris Basis Dimitrios Bibasis (''Δημήτριος Μπιμπάσης''), better known by his stage name Dimitris Basis (''Δημήτρης Μπάσης''), is a Greek singer and musician. He is from the village of Cherso, near the city of Kilkis in Central ...

, Stelios Dionisiou, and

Polina Misailidou Polina Paraskevi Misailidou ( el, Πωλίνα Παρασκευή Μισαηλίδου) is a Greek singer, who is better known in her own country simply as Polina. Polina was born and raised in Nea Smyrni, a suburb in south Athens. She started h ...

. In 1997 he accepted the position of artistic director at the Municipal Theater of the city of

Kavala Kavala ( el, Καβάλα, ''Kavála'' ) is a city in northern Greece, the principal seaport of eastern Macedonia and the capital of Kavala regional unit. It is situated on the Bay of Kavala, across from the island of Thasos and on the Egnat ...

, where he directed three significant productions - ''Ktistes'' by Giorgos Chimonas, ''Gro Plan'' by Giorgos Maniotis, and

Aristophanes Aristophanes (; grc, Ἀριστοφάνης, ; c. 446 – c. 386 BC), son of Philippus, of the deme In Ancient Greece, a deme or ( grc, δῆμος, plural: demoi, δημοι) was a suburb or a subdivision of Athens and other city-states ...

' ''

Plutus In ancient Greek religion and mythology, Plutus (; grc-gre, Πλοῦτος, Ploûtos, wealth) is the god and the personification of wealth, and the son of the goddess of agriculture Demeter and the mortal Iasion. Family Plutus is most commonl ...

'' under the direction of

Nikos Mastorakis Nico Mastorakis ( el, Νίκος Μαστοράκης; born 28 April 1941 in Athens, Greece) is a Greek filmmaker and radio producer. He is probably best known for his 1973 live interview of 17 arrested Greek students, which happened without thei ...

. In 1998, Kraounakis directed a group of young actors called Speira Speira, which successfully performed the ''All in Black and a Piano'' show from October 1999 to April 2001. In 2000 his music for the movie of

Nikos Panagiotopoulos Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos ( el, Νικόλαος Παναγιωτόπουλος; born 18 August 1965 in Kavala) is a Greek politician of the New Democracy (Greece), New Democracy party who has been serving as Minister for National Defence (Greece), ...

'' Afti I Nihta Menei'' won the

National Award The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorate ...

Thessaloniki Film Festival The Thessaloniki Film Festival is a Thessaloniki-based cultural institution focusing on cinema. The Institution organizes the Thessaloniki International Film Festival every November and the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival every March, while its y ...

, while his music for the TV series ''Istera Irthan I Melisses'' won the Award for Best Music in the

Television Awards Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, e ...

. In 2002 his music for the movie ''Kourastika Na Skotono Tous Agapitikous Sou'' (Tired of Killing Your Lovers) won the Arion Award for Best Soundtrack. During 2004 Stamatis Kraounakis composed the music for ''Delivery'', as well as music for Aristophanes' ''Ploutos'' for 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 ...

Epidavros Epidaurus ( gr, Ἐπίδαυρος) was a small city (''polis'') in ancient Greece, on the Argolid Peninsula at the Saronic Gulf. Two modern towns bear the name Epidavros: ''Palaia Epidavros'' and ''Nea Epidavros''. Since 2010 they belong to the ...

. In May 2004 he was invited by the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA; ) is a drama school in London, England, that provides vocational conservatoire training for theatre, film, television, and radio. It is based in the Bloomsbury area of Central London, close to the Sen ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

to compose music for the project "Installation 496". He has written the theme song for one of the most popular TV series in Greece, ''

Maria, i Aschimi ''Maria, i Aschimi'' (Μαρία, Η Άσχημη - Maria, The Ugly One) is the Greek adaptation of the Colombian telenovela ''Betty la Fea''. The series ran from 2007 to 2008 on Mega Channel in Greece. The series starred Aggeliki Daliani in th ...

'', the Greek version of ''

Ugly Betty ''Ugly Betty'' is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which was originally broadcast on ABC. It premiered on September 28, 2006, and ended on April 14, 2010. The series is based on Fernando Gaitán's Colombian t ...

''. In 2010 he voiced Louis the alligator in the

Greek language Greek ( el, label=Modern Greek, Ελληνικά, Elliniká, ; grc, Ἑλληνική, Hellēnikḗ) is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, native to Greece, Cyprus, southern Italy (Calabria and Salento), southern Al ...

version of

The Princess and the Frog ''The Princess and the Frog'' is a 2009 American Animation, animated musical film, musical fantasy film, fantasy romantic comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The List of Walt Disney Anima ...

Discography

* Album discography: 60 albums and 14 collaborations * Shows: Music for 20 shows and 1 ballet * Theatre: Music for 54 performances (31 contemporary theatre, 9 comedies, 8

Ancient Greek drama Ancient Greek theatre was a theatrical culture that flourished in ancient Greece from 700 BC. The city-state of Athens, which became a significant cultural, political, and religious place during this period, was its centre, where the theatre was ...

, 6 children theatre) * Cinema: Music for 4 films * Television: Music for 6 TV series

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kraounakis, Stamatis Living people 1955 births Greek film score composers Male film score composers Greek songwriters Musicians from Athens Panteion University alumni Thessaloniki Song Festival entrants