I am fully persuaded that the pure soul, the restless spirit, the hard work inside out and the high sensitivity are some of the bold characteristics that have the power to influence other people in an unexpected good way. Konstantinο's Sfetsas play evoked me feelings and thoughts that made me wanna see through his inner world. A world that as you could find out from the below interview hides life treasures.

E. Alexaki: You began to practice cello at the age of five. Did you have at this age the concentration, the structure, the passion, as well as the patience to learn such a challenging instrument? If yes, do you believe that such characteristics are innate and are connected with your whole being? 

K. Sfetsas: Looking back and reflecting on things, I think that, at the age of five, I had neither the structure, nor the concentration, nor the patience. What I realize I had – which, in its way, gave rise to all of the above – was the passion and fervour for what I listened to sound beautiful and correct. I tried hard to concentrate and develop my patience, which was a real struggle for me as, being a child, I wanted quick results and refused to accept that things happen in their own time and way. In the end, my innate characteristic was my passion for results. That’s what gave shape to all the other qualities (patience, concentration) and structured a character as a whole, showing me the way and the method to reach the point where a roughly formed idea could start coming true.

E. Alexaki: Your parents also have an artistic background. Do you believe that this circumstance helped you find and/or empower your inner artistic strength? Have you thought of or imagined yourself following a different professional path? 

 K. Sfetsas.: Having parents who are artists has both advantages and disadvantages, like almost everything in life. You can definitely benefit from it and take big steps on a path that someone has followed before you; as well as take on characteristics that will enhance and structure your artistic personality. At the same time, though, you run the risk of finding yourself trapped in patterns and choices of others that might lead to a dead end. There are several examples of children with talent, who couldn’t bear, though, the weight of parents with a strong personality. When practicing the same profession, it gets even harder to differentiate yourself. Sometimes, choosing another profession seems to be the only way; often, only in order to differentiate yourself. It takes persistence to shape, separate and distinguish yourself in order to develop your own artistic personality. There were phases when I was thinking to follow a different career – architecture was something that has always fascinated me. However, these thoughts would evaporate on the spot. Most probably, as time passed by, I became more efficient in untangling situations and sticking around, instead of bypassing them. Gradually, I kept all those artistic characteristics from my family environment that helped me and – looking at things now from a distance – clearly gave me an advantage, while putting aside anything that could have a negative impact on my progress. To conclude, I would say that growing up in a family of artists is a comparative advantage, but, doesn’t come for free. You need to fight for it.

E. Αlexaki: Let’s say that the cello symbolizes “life”. Do you find similarities between them? Do you believe that the practice of cello has also helped you build your values and attributes/attitudes in life? If yes, in what way? 

K. Sfetsas: In this question, I would be tempted to remove the word “symbolizes”. I will leave it, though, as is. First and foremost, let me talk in terms of method. The effort it takes for a performer to execute a piece of music matches and resembles the effort it takes for him/her to achieve almost anything in life. Knowing the stages that you must go through in order to succeed in music, you know how to apply them as well on other aspects of life. If you have learned the way in one thing, you have learned it in everything. The relevance between cello and life, and, life and cello is endless. It is a great tool that can open the way and guide you through everyday life, by giving shape to a distinct reality seen from a distinct perspective. It changes your point of view. It allows you to assess the importance of things, like that of an eternal melody, which has nothing in excess. In cello, you get rid of weight in order to get to the desired result. You get rid of things in order to get to the essence of things, without losing the poetry. The same goes for life.

E. Alexaki: The cello gives me a sense of a contradictory harmony. On the one hand, the dynamics of its size, on the other, the sensitivity of its sound. What would you advise someone who would like to learn cello?

K. Sfetsas.: Having started to practice cello ever since I was five, I went through all sizes, from 1/4 to 4/4. I felt we were growing up together – I did and so did it. Maybe that’s why I had never thought that its size might come in contrast with its timbre. I don’t know if I could give an advice to someone who would like to learn cello, apart from giving him/her the framework. Music cannot be set apart from the rest of the arts. One must discover the connections among the arts and then with life as such. The cello is just the means and so are the notes. If the connection with the whole is missing, then these prove to be lifeless and pretentious. Mostly the case nowadays. One must find the connections of his/her practice with the great and the eternal in order to be able to get detached from the notes and engage with the arts in total. The cello and the notes are like a screw in the machine of existence that has been functioning ever since nature and man have existed and will continue to function while these two continue to exist, and, possibly afterwards. If one gets to apprehend this, then he/she can discover the rest on his/her own. It is this apprehension that is difficult to shape. The method can be learned if the apprehension is aware of things and sheds light on them.

E. Alexaki: I believe that the cello isn’t so widely known among other instruments that young people choose to learn. I also believe that such “solitary” beings have hidden treasures that are revealed only to those who have the gift to discover them. Have you ever felt more isolated, but, at the same time grateful for being able to explore new dynamics through challenging paths both in music and life?

K. Sfetsas: Engaging with true art by default involves isolation and meditation. One must definitely acquire these qualities in order to be able to move more profoundly. You gather information from everyday life and, the stimuli you get, you filter them, you transfigure them in isolation in order to incorporate yourself, your experiences and your comments into them. A very arduous and solitary process, yet sentimentally rewarding as it gives you the pleasure of leaving your mark on things, occasions and Time. Only grateful can one feel as all this solitary course eventually involves, in its way, a group of people who, although they are not artists themselves, have the desire to absorb something different that keeps the true side of oneself alive. By acting in a solitary way, you are sharing paths on a group level, thus, honouring what sets us apart as a species. For me, this is a choice that has been and continues to be the only way. It is a sort of an existential contract, to use a term that sounds more familiar in the jolly period we are living, where everything is described in economic terms and evaluated in terms of profit and loss. It is just, though, that this contract has to do with human existence as such.

E. Alexaki: What boosts your serotonin in everyday life?

K. Sfetsas: Putting aside music, the cello and all forms of art (literature, philosophy, dance, visual arts, theatre, cinema), my engagement with water sports and mountain activities gives me the pleasure of a true contact with nature. Running, swimming, kitesurfing, cycling, hiking, skiing, to name a few, occupy part of my daily life on a regular basis, put things in perspective, satisfy the body and entertain in their own unique way. Because, after all, we are a piece of nature, whose beauty our spirit is simply trying to imitate. It usually fails; still, the effort for such a great and noble cause is worthwhile.