Dimitris Mystakidis, born in 1970 in Thessaloniki, is a profoundly thoughtful and accomplished modern interpreter of old rebetiko.
From his biography at his website: “He plays folk guitar, researches folk guitar, teaches folk guitar, writes books about folk guitar, publishes records about it… in order to restore it to the consciousness of the world, to highlight its importance and its rich character. To make us get to know it or remember it again. And to love it, as he loves it himself.”
Mystakidis studied at the Contemporary Conservatory of Thessaloniki and has since taught at universities in Ioannina and Thessaloniki, appeared on hundreds of recordings with major Greek musicians, played in Nikos Papazagolou’s band and produced some very fine voice-and-guitar recordings of old rebetiko.
The West, a piece that name checks a number of American cities, is an old piece, originally recorded in the U.S. by a number of musicians (Marko Melkon recorded a driving version under the title Sacrament, Boston, New York in the mid-1940s). It appears on Mystakidis’s essential album Amerika, which came out in 2017.
Leave a Reply