Antonis Papadopoulos

Born in Athens in 1981. He studied Greek traditional and classical percussion. In 2001, he discovered the djembe and fell in love with it. Since then, West African percussion has been the focus of his studies and musical journey. He has attended numerous courses and seminars in Greece, Europe, and Africa, and his most significant influence was his apprenticeship with Maré Sanogo. In 2003, he met the choreographer, dancer and dance teacher Anna Karamitsou. He was trained by her in accompanying African dance, and their collaboration began. This resulted in his specialisation in dance – movement accompaniment. In 2004, they founded the African Dance & Music Group SELI KANOU and, in 2007, they established the School of African Dance, Music & Arts in Athens (STUDIO SELI KANOU). This is one of the most important centres in Greece for the study, education and dissemination of African dance and music culture, and he plays a key role there as a music teacher. Since 2007, he has been teaching with passion, faith and dedication to adults and children, aiming to make African percussion widely known and accessible to all. He has created one of the largest libraries of transcripts by converting recordings of djembe music from discographies and videographies into musical scores.