Vasilis was born on September 20, 1960, in Athens, Greece. He earned his college diploma in 1978, his Certificate of Proficiency in 1976 and a Law degree from Athens University in 1988.

Timeline

pete and royce — 1980-1981

• A band which spent its entire short life in Athens, was founded in 1979 by Panagiotis “Pete” Tsiros, an icon painter and guitar player from Kifisia and Vasilis himself, who would also be responsible for musical arrangements. In 1980, joined by Lavrentis Tsinaroglou, Ilias Porfiris, Christos Zorbas, and backed on some tracks by Apocalypsis, they home-recorded what would become Greece’s very first self-released record, Suffering of Tomorrow for Nick Georgoussis’ independent label, Oktohxos. Later that year and during the following year they returned, this time to Tiffany’s Studio, to record Days of Destruction, a more mainstream hard rock follow-up for a mysterious Greek label called Ocean. Critical acclaim at the time was reserved, but both albums capture the haunted and turbulent spirit of the era, as well as express very personal artistic visions. The two albums by Pete & Royce are devoid of pretense, devoid of exercise, and entirely self-guided progressive blossoms from a tree now long chopped down to its stump. The core band members, by the mid-1980s, had gone their own ways, and only vasilis stayed active in music.

the coo — 1982-1983

• Right after pete and royce, vasilis joined for a short term Coo, a commercial rock outfit with a funky twist. He co-wrote the songs that were released in the band's only studio album "Rock Eyes". Shortly after the release and following the lead singers' premature death, the band was dissolved.

the music brigades — 1984-1986 & 1997

• This pioneering indie band was formed in the late 70s, featuring Jimmy Panousis, a talented frontman/actor/stand-up artist/singer who penned all the lyrics and sketches for the live performances. The band played a lot of local gigs and in 1980 they released "Disco Tsoutsouni", most of it recorded before 1977. Some titles were re-recorded for the self-titled debut album "Music Brigades", released in 1982. Next "If my Granny had Wheels" in 1984 and Hard Core (recorded live, 1985) were released. In the next album "Iron Bars", 1986 Jimmy Panousis dropped the Music Brigades name and pursued a solo career. By 1986 vasilis left the outfit but returned in 1997 for the live show "Bulgarian Girls". Since 2010 he is a regular member of Jimmy Panousis' band.

Journey through the window — 1989

• A solo album, following his departure from earlier projects, marks the end of an artistic era for vasilis. With music and lyrics written by himself, this collection of songs reflects a different state of mind and a departure from his rock origins. With its jazzy mood and lavish texture, it reveals a deep nostalgia for innocence lost and the rich, soulful harmonies that used to sooth the listener's ear.

Various Artists — 1990–2010

• An early adopter of music technology (computers and synthesizers) - even worked for Roland as a product specialist for a while - he put his skills in good use, live and in the studio. The result were many platinum-selling CDs and series of successful concerts and live performances all over Greece, backing or arranging for every major artist of his country. While at it, he developed a deep understanding and knowledge of the local repertoire and folk music of the Balkan Peninsula and the Mediterranean Basin. He pioneered the fusion of these world idioms with international pop/rock music and modern production techniques, producing major local mainstream hits for the last two decades. Among other projects he cooperated with Joseph Baldassare on his "Living Theater" international project for Kundurumusic.

jimmy panousis — 2010-2017

• Since his debut, Panousis has introduced a controversial style of rock music with humorous and sarcastic lyrics. His songs include caustic remarks on the political and social reality of Greece. His varied musical style includes mostly rock, reggae and Greek pop. In his live performances, Panousis delivered sarcastic comments about current events and Greek artists and political personalities. Vasilis contributed his unique keyboard style on stage and in the studio for his last album "obi-obi-bi".

ambigua, Act I - 2014

• In July, 2014 "ambigua - Act I" was released, the first of three acts. An ambitious project, ambigua consists of interpretations of selected pieces by composers Debussy, Satie, Schoenberg, Bartok and Mahler. Using mostly software synthesizers, vasilis maintains the basic characteristics of ambiguity and intrinsic - extrinsic metaphor and the deepest, elusive and most tangible secrets of these compositions. - See more here.

Electron Stories with Cats - 2015

• Electron Stories with Cats is an electronic suite in nine parts. It is based on the classical culture (harmonies, progressions, structure etc) of the 20th century modernism with an intense geometric character and mathematical evolvement. Twelve-tone serialism and Bartokesque pentatonics meet chilled soundscaping and abstract cinematic dissonances in an exploration of classical form and modern color. Electron Stories are inspired by the ultimate quest of understanding cosmos through science, art and ultimately religion, as the three mold this human universe for the doctor, the artist and the shaman. In this context, they are reminiscent of "a dying age in which a full synthetic view of nature was still possible, in which one man could not only unify the practice and teaching of medicine, physiology, anatomy and physics, but also relate these sciences significantly and lastingly to the fine arts." (Henry Margenau, his introduction to Sensations Of Tone by Hermann L. F. Helmholtz, 1954).

ambigua, Act II - 2016

• In October, 2016 "ambigua - Act II" was released, the second of the three acts. A rendition of Music for Strings, Percussion, and Celesta by Béla Bartók using synthesizers, their sound lending itself beautifully to the harsh and rough, out-of-this-world but still so earthly, dissonant passages of Bartók's masterpiece, so ahead of its time - See more here.

ambigua, Act III - 2017

• In November, 2017 the third and final act of AmbiguA was released. It features A. Schoenberg's "Verklarte Nacht", a string sextet in one movement adapted by Vasilis for synthesisers. Inspired by a poem by Richard Demhel, Schoenberg composed it in three weeks, at the age of 25. It is a perfect showcase of his uncanny skills in classic harmony. Clearly rooted in D minor, it often ventures far from this home key, using extreme chromaticism, undermining both conventional harmony and metric boundaries, signalling the new era that Schoenberg pioneered a few years later: the 12-tone, serial music system.

Art Music School and Musicians’ Union

• Since September, 2017 vasilis is teaching at Art Music School in Athens. His classes cover a wide range of subjects, from Music Industry, Copyright Law and Marketing for DIY musicians to Art History, Aesthetics and Music Technology. Since 2021 he serves as Vice President for the Panhellenic Musicians’ Union.

 Filmography and TV

• In 1990 he arranged the score for "The Athenians", a comedy based on a series of intersecting stories in which small everyday events and comic incidents combine to create a portrait of modern-day Athens. In 2008 he arranged the score for "Strictly XXX", a comedy about two young Greek filmmakers seeking financing for their film. In this film he adapted Rossini's William Tell overture for buzuki and folk orchestra. He also scored a lot of TV commercials, most known of which are the Nescafe classic ads and the 11880 ads for the Greek market. He is a regular contributing composer for the online music library of cinephonix music library, composing production music for all media.