Giannis Paterakis

Giannis Paterakis, is a 21-year-old drummer from Crete, Greece. He was born and raised in the village of Kissamos. His musical journey began at age 10 when he started playing snare drum in a marching band, which encouraged his passion for drum lessons. From ages 12 to 16, he studied with Cretan drum teachers and between ages 16 and 18, he travelled monthly to Athens to take lessons by Spyros Panagiotopoulos, one of Greece’s leading jazz drum teachers. At 18, he began his studies at the Koninklijk Conservatorium in The Hague, where he is currently in his third year of bachelor’s studies under the guidance of Eric Ineke, Felix Schlarmann, Stefan Kruger, and Willie Jones III.

Since beginning his performance career at 17, he has played over 100 gigs. In Greece, he has performed at numerous bars and clubs, as well as festivals including the Vlatos Jazz Festival and Cretan World Music Festival. In 2024 he had the pleasure of working with Vamos Orchestra as a percussionist where among others they performed Misa Criolla (A. Ramirez) in Giortes Rokkas Festival for an audience of over 5,000 people. While jazz is his primary focus, he has also performed funk, soul, R&B, and pop music, with highlights performing with artists such as Adedeji Adetayo, Jean Loup Longon, Asteris Papastamatakis, Yiannis Papadopoulos, Yiorgos Limakis, Epi K Paradox and Sakis Tsinoukas. In the Netherlands, he performs at venues across South Holland, including Dizzy’s Jazz Cafe in Rotterdam and Murphy’s Law in The Hague.

https://youtube.com/@giannispaterakis2991?si=KdeNYLQkXTeuG8-0