Sounds from Southern Europe at El Rey Theater
CHICO >> His big break wasn’t handed to him. He created it.
Guitarist Pavlo Simtikidis self funded a 2-hour concert in his parents’ hometown, Kastoria, Greece and recorded it.
“It was either gonna be the most expensive home video of all time, or someone was gonna play it,” he said.
He and his wife called every TV station they could think of until one finally responded.
PBS picked up the recording and played it in Los Angeles. Its popularity was immediately noticed, so they played it in 150 more cities across the U.S. That humbled Simtikidis to his core, he said. Up until that point, his shows were only word of mouth.
Simtikidis will bring his flavorful mix of Mediterranean sounds to El Rey Theater on Feb. 8.
His life has essentially been a 20-year music tour. He hits 150 cities a year, and in 2018, hit 200.
“The time in between (shows), I’m basically trying to get to the next place,” he said. “I’m on a mission to share my music with as many people as I can.”
He has done three shows with PBS in total, and will film the next one on June 20 in Santorini, Greece, an island he’s been visiting since childhood. It will air in December.
He has always desired to play a show there, but has never been able to because the island has no proper venue.
To bring his vision to reality, he is going to create a concert venue on a helipad atop a cliff. The project is seven years in the making. “I think of great ideas, and the logistics come later,” he said. He will be the first artist in history to bring a show from the small island to the rest of the world.
Simtikidis has been strumming guitar strings since he was 10 years old, and started composing his own music when he was 12. It was an “instant love affair,” he said. He has produced 15 albums in his adult life. During his shows, he plays music he’s written over the course of his lifetime.
“My music has never been in fashion. Who cares?” he joked.
Joining him in Chico will be Dimitri Bogris (bouzouki), Gino Mirizio (percussion) and Curtis Freeman (bass). “All top notch musicians, man,” Simtukidis said.
The instrumental concert will be “like a Mediterranean escape in Chico for two awesome hours.”
Tickets are $45 general and $62.50 for a meet-and-greet. They can be purchased on pavlov.com or by calling 243-5493 or 921-9982. El Rey Theater is located at 230 W. Second St.