Today we’d like to introduce you to Ileana Nikitakis.
Hi Ileana, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
As long as I can remember, I said “I want to play violin”. My father is a guitarist, and we had various different instruments at home, but not a violin. When I was six years old, my grandmother said “let’s buy the child a violin.” And that’s where it began. I took classical violin lessons in Cologne (Köln), Germany where I grew up, and then started playing in a band at age ten. At that point, I already told everyone that I would be a musician when I grew up. The band helped shaped my path. We were sponsored by the “SK Stiftung für Kultur” (SK Foundation of Culture) as a cultural project to keep the music and language of Cologne alive. My father, Vassilios Nikitakis, coached us and put a program together that was a wild mix of music from Cologne from the 20s through the 50s, blues, world music, country and some Greek music.
He helped shape my way of approaching the violin and sparked my interest in playing various styles. I later dived deeper into Rebetiko music, a style I always heard my dad play. It’s often called “the Greek Blues”. After moving to Texas to play Country, Jazz and Western Swing my way of playing the instrument changed – and I was soon told that I play fiddle.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The first big obstacle I hit was a concussion – I guess the obstacle hit me in a car accident. I suddenly couldn’t remember songs that I had been playing for over a year, and my short-term memory pretty much disappeared. After years of doing little motor exercises, for example brushing my teeth with the recessive hand, bringing the fingertips of the thumb and other fingers together over and over again, and accepting that the brain doesn’t heal overnight, I am finally back to feeling like myself. However, I was pretty lost there for several years. About two years ago, I started having issues playing violin due to a sports injury. When the pandemic put a sharp halt to all of our music lives, I scaled down the amount of playing time. That wasn’t enough to heal, so I eventually stopped playing violin. I tried to pick up the guitar more often, but that wasn’t cutting it for me. I missed the violin too much. After getting the injury checked by a doctor and being told that there was nothing to do but physical therapy, I started the journey of healing my shoulder. I added in bodywork sessions at Chulel Wellness in Austin, I went for acupuncture at Five Element Austin, started working out regularly and went swimming again (a childhood hobby of mine). Eventually, a friend told me about Alexander Technique. I have been taking lessons with Molly Johnson to help with my posture, especially when I play violin, and it has made all the difference. Last week was the first week that my shoulder didn’t hurt after playing, which is an amazing feeling.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I just played my first gig (a private party) in a very long time, and I couldn’t be happier to return to playing – especially since I played Greek music, which has caught up with me in the last few months, after not playing it much for many years. I grew up around the Greek culture since my father is from Greece. We ate the food at home, spent time with Greek friends, and went to Greece to see my family. My father is a blues guitarist, but later in life, he picked up the bouzouki and started mixing the blues with Greek Rebetiko music, calling it the Rebetobluz. During the time that I wasn’t able to play in the past year, I started bringing two more of my favorite styles together in a recording project. Candler Wilkinson IV and I are arranging some of the songs from Cologne from the 20s through the 50s that I grew up playing. I have been weeding through songs for the last few months, and they bring up memories from when I was a child and teenager, playing the songs with my friends, and later also with my father. Cologne has its own slang, that was the official language during the medieval ages.
All old official papers are in this slang. People in Cologne tend to be very witty with their words – and you better have a good answer ready when their sometimes rather dry jokes come your way. We call Cologne Slang “Kölsch” – just like the beer. So we say it’s the only language you can drink! The lyrics of many of the older songs are very witty: one describes an annual boat trip down the river Rhine of a group of people that parties so hard that even the narrator eventually agrees that they have to return to shore. Another one talks about a bowling club that books tickets for the first rocket to the moon because they want to take a break from working like a horse on planet Earth. And then there’s one that’s all about being homesick for Cologne. It has been awesome to work with Candler on this project, that has been on my mind for many years. He has amazing ideas for the arrangements that bring them to life in a different way. We will record the songs later this year.
Over the past years, I have been teaching violin (and fiddle 😉 ) all over Austin and in the Hill Country. I love passing on what I have learned. It is awesome to see my students again after a long year of online lessons.
One big change that has been in the works for the last months is the change of my artist name. Until now, I always went by Ileana Nina, but from now on, all my music work will be under the name “Ileana Nikitakis”.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
There is a long list of people who have helped me shape my path. My father, Vassilios Nikitakis – aka Nick Nikitakis – definitely helped me break out of only playing classical music and sparked my interest in all the styles I mentioned above. I always heard him play guitar – I guess it was the soundtrack of my childhood, and most definitely a good one. He went to the record store regularly and brought home CDs by all kinds of different artists, such as Vassar Clements, Itzhak Perlman, the Chicks (their album “Fly” got me into country music), various versions of Vivaldi’s four seasons, Stephane Grappelli and so many more. My mother, Monika, who has always supported my plans. She is one of the most creative people I know and the only one in our family who isn’t a musician. But she will always help me think about a way to make the next step work or bring an idea to life.
My sister Alexia, who I grew up playing music with. She accompanied me on the piano at my recitals, and then we played together in bands for years until we formed our own band when we were briefly living in the same place. The songs that we wrote were a fusion of all the different music worlds we had been part of.
Markus Reinhardt is a violinist who played with my father when I was younger, and he was the first non-classical violinist I spent time with. His playing is absolutely beautiful, and I always loved listening when he would come over to our place to rehearse.
Justin Branum introduced me to playing Western swing at a fiddle camp in Nacogdoches, Texas, long before I moved to Austin. Learning from him was my introduction to arranging several fiddles together in songs like “Lullaby of Birdland” and “Lady Be Good”. I still occasionally take lessons with him and it’s amazing to talk to him about fiddle arrangements and everything else Western swing!
A friend took me to a gig of Erik Hokkanen – that was unfortunately after the Flipnotic days – but his playing was amazing. He asked me to sit in, and I have learned so much every single time I spent time with him. He is another amazing fiddler!
For a long time, I went to Warren Hood’s gigs in Austin every week. His playing caught my ear immediately and I later took a few lessons with him. I always went home with a lot to think about and work on, and Warren’s lessons changed the way I practiced at home.
It is always fun to hear Katie Shore play. Ever since I met her and jammed with her, she has been supportive of my playing and the projects I am working on.
My professors in College, Carlos Fernandez, Steven Sodders, Duane Keith, Craig Nazor, Russel Scanlon and Charles Medlin, helped me expand my horizons by letting me play in a big band with the violin, teaching me how to play piano and guitar, to write parts, and how to record.
My friend Franca Hoffmann. We went to school together and still talk every week, sharing our journey and encouraging each other. Franca is an amazing violist, but after school she became a researcher and professor of Mathematics. The conversations with her show me a whole other world that I wouldn’t get to see without her, and I always appreciate her insight, honest opinion and support.
Last but not least, all the musicians I have played with over the years. I got to play so many different styles with so many amazing musicians.
There are so many more musicians, mentors, and people who believed in me, and I am so glad to have all of them join me along the way.
Contact Info:
- Email: hello@ileananikitakis.com
- Website: www.ileananikitakis.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ileananikitakis/
Image Credits
Andrew Carrell Alexia Nikitakis Michael Harberg Curtis Clogston
