Christos Farmakis grew up in Thessaloniki, Greece where he had his first music lessons by Miltos Tsivdaris at Bolero music school. He holds a degree in harmony, counterpoint & fugue from the National Conservatory in Athens and a BA & Master in Composition from the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen, where he studied with Hans Abrahamsen, Bent Sørensen & Hans Peter Stubbe Teglbjærg.
Has composed for various ensembles and orchestras with performances in all of Europe, USA, South America and China. He is a field recording enthusiast, appreciates nature & local food and enjoys exploring the psychedelic element in all forms of art and in everyday life.
TIMELINE • HIGHLIGHTS
- 1981
- Born in Larissa, Greece
- 1995
- First music job as a folk guitarist, Thessaloniki
- 1996
- Started playing the 4-string bouzouki
- 1995-1999
- Music theory and harmony studies at Bolero Music School, Thessaloniki
- 2000-2006
- Counterpoint and fuge studies at National Conservatory, Athens
- 2005
- Switched from 4-string to 3-string bouzouki
- 2007-2012
- Composition studies at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, Copenhagen
- 2010
- Composed the original music for the short film Open Secret by Adamos & Asikelis. Screenings in Thessaloniki International Short Film Festival & Dialog Short Film Festival in Turkey
- 2011
- Static Spheres selected and performed at Druskomanija Festival in Lithuania
- 2012
- Zvon premiered at Festival Neue Musik Lunebürg
Jinx – Double concerto for 2 accordions & orchestra commissioned by the Royal Danish Academy of Music and premiered at the RDAM annual commemoration concert conducted by Michael Schønwandt
US premiere of raptus performed by University of Utah New Music Ensemble in Salt Lake City, Utah - 2013
- Started (also) playing a 5-string Irish bouzouki
World premiere of director’s cut in Helsinki Music Centre, Finland
Founding member of Kottos quartet in Copenhagen - 2015
- World premiere of swamp at Pittsfield’s 10 X 10 Upstreet Arts Festival, Massachusetts, USA
- 2016
- Co-composer of Kottos debut album that won the Danish Radio’s P2 Listeners Award
World premiere of “Plasma” at a full moon concert at the National Observatory of Athens
Arranged and performed a chamber version of Händel’s Messiah on tour in Denmark with Kottos & Musica Ficta, conducted by Bo Holten - 2017
- Danish Radio’s Musikariet commissioned a 60 min work for sinfonietta based on Homer’s Odyssey. The stories of Nobody premiered at DR Koncerthuset in Copenhagen
Performed the bouzouki part in the world premiere of John Frandsen’s opera Martyriet in the Royal Danish Opera in Copenhagen
Concert tour in Norway & Greece with Kottos - 2018
- Argentinian premiere of 4 miniatures by Jutlandia Saxophone Quartet in Buenos Aires
Concert tour in England, Scotland, Iceland with Kottos
EP release: den feje konge - 2019
- Concert tour in Argentina with Kottos, accompanying the official state visit of HM The Queen and HRH The Crown Prince of Denmark
Concert tour in China with Kottos, including performances in Beijing, Changsha, Foshan, Yangzhou and a masterclass in Shanghai
Arrangements of works by Nikos Skalkottas, Edvard Grieg & Béla Bartók released by Orchid Classics on the album Songs and Dances
Concert collaboration of Kottos with viola virtuoso Tatjana Masurenko in Copenhagen and live transmission from the Danish Radio P2 - 2020
- World premiere of like dreams of the dawn and scarecrows of the night by KIMI trio in Iceland. The concert is nominated for “concert of the year” in the Icelandic Music Awards 2021.
- 2021
- La marionnette performed at the 21st Century Guitar Conference in Lisbon, Portugal
- 2022
- Plasma performed at re-sonanz festival in Berlin, Germany
US premiere of like dreams of the dawn… at the Camden Opera House, ME, USA
