Events and Festivals in Crete

Michalis Stavrakakis was born in the village of Armanogeia in Heraklion on the island of Crete and brought up in Anogeia in Rethymnon in a family of many well known traditional musicians of the Cretan musical idiom. He is a self taught musician and learnt how to play the laouto and the mandolin with the help of some of the most renowned artists of the Cretan musical tradition.
During his 25-year -career, he has collaborated in concerts and recordings with some of the legendary figures of Cretan music such as Kostas Mountakis, Giannis Xylouris, Stelios Foustalierakis, Manolis Faragoulitakis, Vasilis Skoulas, Dimitris Sgouros and many others.
Together with Ross Daly and his cousins Vasilis and Mitsos, he was a founding member of the group "Labyrinth" in 1982. Later on he joined the group "Chainides".
He has developed a very special technique on the mandolin and he is considered the best mandolin player on Crete today. He has composed music for the theatre and he teaches at the State Music School for traditional music in Heraklion.