Kalogridis Giorgos

Giorgos Kalogridis was born in 1923 at the village Spili, in Rethimnon. He started playing the lyre when he was fourteen years old. The military occupation found him at his birthplace that he is to leave a few years later in order to go to Athens. During this period, he records his first album. In total, the album includes twenty songs some of which are his own compositions and are characteristic of his unique voice.
In the majority of his recordings two well - known players of the lute participate and these are no other than the brothers Giannis and Vaggelis Markogiannakis. The gifted lyrist leaves Greece in 1966 for New York where he still lives to this day. In 1977, he suffers a stroke and the ‘golden’ arm of the lyrist paralyses thus stealing away from his audience as well as himself the chance to perform again. Nevertheless, his contribution to Cretan music has marked the course of our musical tradition and we will never stop owing him a big ‘thank you’.