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Costas Baltazanis
Guitarist , Composer , Music Professor , Head of the Modern and Jazz Music Department at Ph. Nakas Conservatory, Athens Greece
Studies: Berklee College of Music (Jazz Performance Diploma '89 and Professional Music Diploma '88 ) , Hellenic Conservatory ( Classical Guitar Diploma '82 )
Performance: During his stay in the USA (1983-'89) he played with jazz and pop-rock groups at some of Boston's best-known clubs. He took part in several recordings in Berklee, the most important involving compositions by Rafael Reina and Jessica Lange along with the Boston Symphony Orchestra/String section. He returned to Athens, Greece in 1990 and he played with the most celebrated musicians in the local jazz scene. In 1991 he was a guest musician to perform with the Stuttgart Symphony Orchestra at a special international tribute to the memory of Maria Callas at the Herod Atticus Theatre in Athens, an event that was given live coverage by 150 television stations worldwide. Since then, Costas Baltazanis is an active jazz player performing in Greece, Spain, Finland, Israel, Luxemburg, Cyprus, Bulgaria and Germany. Some of the people he has played with are Arturo Sandoval, Kenwood Dennard, Ron Savage, Ray Santisi, Greg Badolato, Larry Monroe, Omar Faruk Tekbilek, Jim Kelly, Rick Pekham.
Costas Baltazanis plays : electric guitar, nylon string guitar, steel string guitar, fretless guitar and bass guitar.
IASIS: In 1995 he formed IASIS,along with Petros Kourtis on Percussion and Yiotis Kiourtsoglou on Bass, a group performing his own compositions in the field of world fusion. He performed with IASIS in a big number of major concerts in Greece (the Athens Concert Hall, Ancient theatre of Epidaurus and other key halls and festivals) Spain, Germany and Luxemburg. The band has collaborated on stage with several leading performers including Omar Faruk Tekbilek, the Bulgarian Voices and Giorgos Dalaras.
IASIS recorded and produced 'Iasis' ('96), 'Amalgama' ('99) with guest singers from the "Bulgarian Voices" and one CD single 'Amalgama mix' (2000) under the label of 'LYRA RECORDS'. Later they recorded 'Duente' (2003) under the label of 'EMARCY'.
Teaching : He started as a Guitar and Harmony teacher at Ph. Nakas Conservatory ('91 - '92) and later taught Ear Training, Jazz Composition, Ensembles and Improvisation courses. He has been giving lectures and seminars in all major cities in Greece. For two consecutive summers (1996 and 1997), Costas Baltazanis was invited by Berklee College of Music to teach and give concerts for the students and the teachers of the Guitar Department.
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Baltazanis: End Of Seas
by Dan Bilawsky
The bounding main knows no single shape, size, or direction. It's both timeless in nature and organic in its arc and flow. Greek guitarist Costas Baltazanis seems to intuitively understand those facts. His is a music that taps into the water's vastness, appreciates its beauty, respects and harnesses its strengths, and rides the ever-adjusting tides. End Of Seas contains an aqueous assortment of music. Some songs are tranquil, others are full of danger, and all are unique ...
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Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson