Swedish pianist Joel Lyssarides and bouzouki player Georgios Prokopiou create a captivating duo, blending jazz with a subtle Greek flair.
ACT Music
Joel Lyssarides – Piano; Georgios Prokopiou – Bouzouki
The pairing of piano and bouzouki might seem unusual for a jazz album, but ARCS & RIVERS defies expectations. Swedish pianist Joel Lyssarides and bouzouki player Georgios Prokopiou create a captivating duo, blending jazz with a subtle Greek flair.
Lyssarides, a graduate of the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, draws comparisons to Nordic master Esbjörn Svensson and the lyrical style of Bill Evans. In his compositions, he tends to blend elements of jazz with classical, folk, and world music. He has worked with a wide range of artists, including Anne Sofie von Otter, Benny Andersson, Nils Landgren, and Viktoria Tolstoy. Recently, he participated in the e.s.t. 30 tribute, celebrating Esbjörn Svensson’s music. Since its release in 2022, Lyssarides ’ACT debut album STAY NOW has been played an impressive 25 million streams on Spotify.
Georgios Prokopiou, originally from Athens and now based in Stockholm, started playing the bouzouki at just six and a half. He made his concert debut at eight, and by the age of ten, he was already performing in the bars of Athens.
The bouzouki is a long-necked lute with a rounded body, flat top, and a fretted fingerboard. Its steel strings, played with a plectrum, produce a sharp, metallic sound similar to a mandolin but with a lower pitch. The instrument has become emblematic of Greek folk music, especially through the works of composer Mikis Theodorakis.
Lyssarides elegant piano introduces ‘Arcs, ’while Prokopiou’s bouzouki sounds like a shimmering string section. They complement each other beautifully, trading the spotlight as the dominant instrument in this romantic piece.
‘A Night In Piraeus ’is more intense with Lyssarides ’left hand pounding out a bass line worthy of Mingus, while his right hand mimics the bouzouki. Prokopiou picks up the theme and it’s fun to hear both musicians bounce improvisations off one another.
‘Zafeirious Solo’ is the album’s only live track, recorded during a rehearsal concert at the ACT Art Collection in Berlin. It is the most distinctly Greek piece on the album, with Prokopiou’s bouzouki starting slowly before gaining momentum, with the piano comping like crazy behind him. As the track builds, both instruments intensify, pushing the tempo to its peak as if they’re racing each other.
The piano shapes ‘Kamilieriko Road’ with simple, repeating ascending and descending phrases. It shifts the tempo with high-register runs, while the bouzouki echoes its lines. As the bouzouki takes over, the tempo slows, leaving the piano sounding more somber.
The two musicians composed every track except one, recording the entire album in a single four-hour session, mostly in first takes. Lyssarides, known for his perfectionism and tendency to spend days refining music in the studio, explained, “This time, I wanted it to be as direct and in-the-moment as possible.” And it paid off.
