Kalia Lyraki’s journey began with a dual passion for music and dance until her focus eventually gravitated towards music early on in her career.
Her upbringing in Greece immersed her in folk dance, and she has performed as both a dancer and musician, with traditional Greek dance groups in London including ‘Lykeio Ellinidon’ and ‘Lyra Dancers’. She has also studied Greek Folk dance ethnography with Dr. Irene Loutzaki.
Academically, Kalia holds an MA in Dance Anthropology (Ethnochoreology) from Roehampton University, where her focus was on Middle Eastern music and dance. During her course she studied ‘Dance, Ritual and Performance’ with Dr. Avanthi Methuri, ‘Dance as a Socio-Cultural Practise’ with Dr. Andrée Grau and ‘Dance Anthropology: The Construction of a Field’ with Dr. Ann David. She attended an intensive Erasmus seminar for new Ethnochoreologists in Trondheim, Norway, at the Norwegian University for Science and Technology, under the supervision of Dr. Egil Baka.
Kalia has extensive experience in belly dance, having performed with the dance groups of Josephine Wise and Mia Serra. Additionally, Kalia has taught belly dance classes at SOAS and University College London, and run workshops for various events, including fundraising initiatives (such as Amnesty International’s ‘Dance for Congo’). Despite no longer actively participating in dance, Kalia remains enthusiastic about leading music workshops specifically designed for belly dancers.
She has also studied contemporary dance including contact improvisation with Laliteraja (aka Jo Chandler) and at The City Academy, Release dance at The Place and with Efi Kolovou and Marta Swierczynska.
In the realm of music, she contributed to the production of Shakespeare’s ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, by ‘Ballet Cymru’, contemporary dance group, playing the nay for the score composed by Frank Moon. With a personal understanding of movement, Kalia is interested in opportunities for composing music for contemporary dance productions.
