Biography

Born in 1978 in Rhodes, Greece, Leonidas Sakellarides studied violin in Rhodes Music School (Teaching Diploma in 1997) with K. Vatikiotis and later composition at Hull University with Dr. Alistair Borthwick, Dr. Bennett Zon and Dr. Thoma Simaku. He graduated in 1999 with a First Class Degree (BMus) and the Departmental prize and then completed a Masters Degree (MMus) in 2000. At the same period he studied the violin with Richard Quick and Fiona Love . In 2001 he settled in Athens Greece, where he completed the Hellenic Conservatory, school of Advanced Theoretical Studies (Harmony, Counterpoint and Fugue Degrees) with G. Arabidis. He is currently studying for a PhD (receiving a Faculty of Arts scholarship) in Composition at Hull University under the supervision of Alistair Borthwick and also classical singing (tenor) with Mechtild Stamataki. He is working as a freelance music teacher and performer, based in Athens..

Leo prefers to write music for acoustical instruments as well as voice and less frequently he writes electroacoustic music. He is interested in improvisation, the expansion of monophonic ideas into multi - layered textures, as well as the use of Ancient and Modern Greek literature in his music. Lately he has also written some pieces that could be described as minimalist pieces, making a turn towards mysticism and the exploration of rituals. He had pieces being performed by the BBC Philharmonic, the Allegri String Quartet, the University of Hull and Manchester University Symphony Orchestras as well as other ensembles.