Gary Kerkezou
Kerkezou Gary is a drummer and violonist who lives and works in New York. She was born in Athens and comes from a family of musicians. At the age of 18 she obtained a diploma in classical violin and then continued her studies at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, having earned the Berklee European Tour Scholarship, the BIN Augmentetion Award and Kostas Kouvidis Foundation Scholarship.
In Boston she started playing and recording along with two other instruments and a couple of years later she became a member of the Boston Civic Symphony as one of the first violonist. She has attended lessons with Ralph Peterson Jr, Neal Smith and Billy Kilson whereas during her studies she earned many awards: the Berklee Achievement Grant, the "Most Improved" Award, the Terri Lyne Carrington Scholarship and the Zildjian Scholarship. She continued studying for a master's program with Kendrick Scott at the Manhattan School of Music (MSM) in New York and graduated in May 2020. At the same year she was chosen for the Student Awards from the Downbeat Magazine in the Latin Jazz Ensemble category.
Among other places, she has appeared at the Lincoln Center's Dizzy’s Club and at the United Palace Theater. She has given masterclasses at the Frank Sinatra School of the Arts, the KC Area Youth Jazz and at the Mont Saint Charles Academy.
Also she has collaborated with Lalah Hathaway, Javon Jackson, Chris Brubeck, Bill Pierce, Christian McBride, Cyrus Chestnut, Jacob Collier, Patrick Doyle and Vladimir Fedoseyev. She continues her professional career in the USA.
Discography
As a sideman:
Francesco Amenta: Midnight walk (Amenta music international) 2020
