In the summer of 2003, Jeannie Niokos and friends made their European debut in Thessalonika, Greece. They have made yearly appearances on the Main Stages of Canada's largest cultural and music festivals to include, Celebrate Toronto Street Fest; The Krinos Foods, Taste of the Danforth and It's Your Festival, Canada Day Celebrations.
Additionally, they have performed for various fund-raising organizations in support of Canadian Athletes - See You In Athens Fund, Music Education - Closer to the Heart, and Humanitarian efforts by Catherine Collective for building a Woman and Children's Clinic, Jalalabad, Afghanistan. Evolution has been awarded:
Additional highlights include:
Jeannie Niokos was born to Greek parents in the small town of Sigen, Germany and raised in Toronto, Canada. The multicultural environment created between home and school, paved the way for an appreciation of a broad range of musical styles and sounds that ranged from Motown to The Rite of Spring. Growing up, Niokos' musical diet consisted of Byzantine sounds from church, Greek folk music at home, classical piano lessons, school choirs, jazz choirs and a knack for the tenor saxophone. Fortunate to be a part of J.W. Jeffery's award winning stage band and jazz choir, Niokos was put on stage, in the spotlight and in the recording studio at 17 under the direction of trombonist Paul Minor. It was the recording of Profile that prompted her to pursue a professional career in music. Her musical pillars quickly became Chick Chorea, Spiro Gyra, Pat Matheney, late great jazzman Moe Kaufman and Manhatan Transfer. Niokos received a Bachelor of Fine Arts, (BFA) specialized honours degree in piano performance from York University with additional courses in jazz studies, conducting and composition. Her musical influences included:
Upon graduating York in 1987, Niokos founded The Jeannie Niokos School of Music, purchased the basis for a home recording studio and began composing by day and teaching at night. Her efforts were first rewarded by FACTOR with The New Talent Demo Award. In 1995 an introspective trip of Canada's West coast inspired a desire to return and explore the music of her Greek heritage. Within the year she was playing and singing traditional Greek Repertoire at weddings and community functions. In the summer of 1996 Niokos performed the National Trade Centre at the Canadian National Exhibition when Greece was the featured country. Shortly thereafter, she met mentor Nick Kutsukos while playing Greek Blues (Rebetica) at the trendy bar Klick in Yorkville. The two worked so well together, they embarked on tours from Canada's West Coast, to Venezuella, and Greece.  "Nick was the only Bouzouki player that I performed with to approach his instrument with the sensitivity of a classical musician. His playing was such an inspiration, I decided to marry him." Getting married in the spring of 1999, inspired Niokos to compose First Dance a.k.a. Olympic Flame. It was based on the vibrant folk rhythm Karsilamas that fused classical and jazz influences throughout. By the fall of 1999, Niokos had enough material to record her debut instrumental CD release Evolution. She had developed a desire to put the bouzouki in a concert hall setting and proceeded to orchestrate her music appropriately, (Grand Piano, Bouzouki). Pushing boundaries even further, she proceeded to add an unprecedented line up of instrumentation to include: flute, saxophone, bass and drums that would inevitably be reflective of her life-long diverse musical training and influences. Her term contemporary Greek became most appropriate. In the fall of 2000, Tom Hanks' Playtone Production Company came to Toronto to shoot the mega hit film My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Niokos and Kutsukos were asked to record traditional Greek folk songs for the film which later led to the licensing of two original tracks from Evolution. Kutsukos made his movie debut with the performance of Secret Garden and Dear God in the movies Easter scene. Evolution was later recorded and released in November 2000 and became available for sale nationally at select Indigo Music & Books stores and internationally through various online distributors, i.e., Amazon.com, CD Street, and jeannieniokos.com. Evolution has sold out twice and is currently in it's third and final running. Evolution will not be reprinted in order to remain a collector's item. (Full Circle is an exploration of English lyrics over Greek folk rhythms) Niokos is currently on faculty at The Royal Conservatory of Music. In addition to co-establishing, authoring and teaching the Digital Piano Classes, she teaches private piano lessons part time. Evolution and My Big Fat Greek Wedding soundtrack are currently available for purchase here through our secure site. |
| Evolution | |
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1. evolution (4:30) 2. sea breeze (3:26) 3. first dance (4:13) 4. secret garden (3:15) 5. let's belly dance (2:59) 6. for the children (4:03) 7. dear god (5:57) 8. a little sabah (4:33) 9. eros beach (3:52) 10. remember when (3:09) |
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| My Big Fat Greek Wedding | |
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3. Orea Pou Ine I Nifi Mas Arranged by Jeannie Niokos Keyboards by Jeannie Niokos 6. Secret Garden Written by Jeannie Niokos Performed live by: Nick Kutsukos on solo bouzouki in movie's Easter scene. |
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