I'm 100% Greek and I play drums. What these two facts have to do with each other, not entirely sure. I was born in Montreal, moved to Oakland in 96 and now live in LA. I also play dumbek and percussion. I've toured all over Asia, Europe and North America. I've performed live with Steve Lacy, Cecil Taylor, Malcolm Goldstein, George Lewis, Trance Mission, Dana Reason, Chirgilchin, William Winant, Alvin Curran, Gino Robair, Bob Ostertag, Ron Winan, Glen Spearman, Anthony Davis, Bern Nix, Mitsou, Emiline Michel, Martine St. Clair, Don Preston and the trio Sound on Survival featuring Marco Eneidi and Lisle Ellis. I also jammed on some standards with Chaka Khan once. I was self taught until, in my mid twenties, I realized school wasn't so bad so I went and got me a couple of diplomas. I also do lots of electronic music too. What do the critics have to say about me???
"inventive throughout, especially as a soloist" - Dan Warburton - Bagatellen
"a 'ride' cymbal that careens through city streets at twice the speed of sound" - George Lewis
"Valsamis exercises supple strength with sticks and serves in a similar capacity as propulsive force. He also acts as a crafty coloring agent when emphasis switches to atmospheric extrapolation. " - Derek Taylor All About Jazz
"Valsamis responds with drumming that slashes across the kit, laying out open pointillistic colors in the quiet sections and then building to lithe cascades." - Michael Rosenstein - One Final Note
"the real suprise of the show was drummer Peter Valsamis. After hearing him play, now I can understand how he was picked to play with Cecil Taylor." - posted by Michael on freejazz.org