ergon ensemble
contemporary music, athens

Nikos Tsoukalas was born in 1975 in Athens. He started his musical studies in 1997 with T. Kapoyannis on the double bass and V. foster, I. Papadatos in musical harmony.

He completed his studies in Greece in 2002 after receiving his diplomas with the highest mark. While studying he started playing in major Greek orchestras such as the Orchestra of the National Opera House and the Orchestra of the National Theatre of Greece.

Additionally, he participated in numerous masterclasses with Thomas Martin, Petya Bagovska, Jorma Katrama, and Duncan McTier.

In 2003 he was granted a scholarship from the State Scholarship Foundation of Greece and was offered a place in the Royal Academy of Music at London.

Nikos Tsoukalas has performed both as a soloist and an orchestral player with renowned conductors such as Vladimir Ashkenazy, Sir Colin Davies, Hugh Wolff of Christoph von Dohnanyi. 

 

In 2005 he was offered an extra place in the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra where he stayed until the completion of his studies in the U.K.

He returned to Greece after receiving a position at the Greek Opera House, followed by a position at the Athens State Orchestra.

He has a very rich presence in the Greek chamber music scene, with many successful performances both as an ensemble- and solo-player. He is a member of Ergon since 2009.