DEKAVALLAS Dimitris
Multiple award winner Dimitris Dekavallas has established himself as one of the most talented guitarists of his age. Much in demand as a soloist worldwide, Dimitris has been performing from the age of nine. Since graduating from the Royal Academy of Music in London in 2007, he has given recitals throughout the UK, Germany, USA, Asia, Italy, Romania, Hungary, Spain, Portugal and Greece, including at the National Concert Hall in Athens. He has been invited to perform as a soloist and give master-classes in many international festivals, including the Ripon International Music Festival, Abu Dhabi International Music and Arts Festival, North Wales International Music Festival, London International Guitar festival, Deal International Music Festival, and Ards International Guitar Festival and many others.
Dimitris has performed as soloist with the Staatsorchester Rheinische Philharmonie in Germany, the Romanian Tirgu Mures Philharmonia, and in the UK with the Hertfordshire Philharmonia and the Hertford College Music Society Orchestra in Oxford. Many composers have dedicated their works to Dimitris, including Nikita Koshkin, Julian Jacobson and Hayley Savage. He released his debut recording Music for Oboe and Guitar in 2009 with the oboist Marios Argiros (previously Principal Oboe, BBC Philharmonic), and has since recorded a number of pieces for the popular guitar CD Simply Spanish Moods. He is currently working on his third recording for solo guitar. Most recently Dimitris gave a private recital at Lambeth Palace in London for the Archibishop of Canterbury and Pope Benedict II. Future plans include appearances at the Wigmore Hall and South Bank Centre in London.
Dimitris was born in Athens and began learning the guitar at the age of six. He began learning at the National Conservatory of Athens and continued his studies at the Hellenic Conservatory of Music, where he studied with Angelos Nikolopoulos. He graduated from the Conservatory in 2002 with 1st Prize and was honoured with the Haralambos Ekmetzoglou Music Award. In 2004, Dimitris won 1st Prize from the IKY National Scholarship Foundation in Greece. This enabled him to go to London to further his studies at the Royal Academy of Music, under Micheal Lewin, David Russell, Timothy Walker and John Mills. Whilst studying at the Academy, he won the Tebutt Exhibition Scholarship and the Blyth Watson Award. In 2007, Dimitris received his Diploma of Postgraduate Performance, graduating with Distinction. During this time, he also won the prestigious Ivor Mairants guitar award, given by the Worshipful Company of Musicians, who have since granted him the honorable Freedom of the City of London.
An important part of his artistic development has been participating in masterclasses with some of the greatest musicians of today, including John Williams, Julian Bream, Pepe Romero, David Russell, Eliot Fisk, Hubert Kappel, George Hatzinikos, Carlos Marchione, Fabio Zanon, Kostas Kotsiolis and Carlo Domeniconi. He has also played in workshops with Sir Richard Rodney Bennett and Sir Peter Maxwell Davies.
Dimitris has taken part in many international festival and competitions and has won more than 13 international and national prizes.
Dimitris is a D’addario artist using D’addario J46 strings on his G. Smallman 2007 guitar.
