Melina Paxinos

Melina Paxinos is a German-born Greek saxophonist, composer and bandleader whose music moves between contemporary jazz, Mediterranean influences, neoclassical textures and cinematic soundscapes. Born and raised in Hamburg and shaped artistically between Germany and Greece, Paxinos studied music production, arranging and composition at SRH Hochschule der populären Künste in Berlin. Her music combines melody and atmosphere with odd meters, Mediterranean influences, improvisation and visual storytelling. Since her debut Circle of Oddness (2018), she has expanded her musical world through Athens, featuring Cretan lyra player Ross Daly, Remixes EP with Greek electronic music pioneer Lena Platonos, Time with trumpeter Andreas Polyzogopoulos, and the orchestral project Amoroso. The Melina Paxinos Quartet features Yiannis Papadopoulos on piano, Ntinos Manos on bass and Dimitris Klonis on drums. Her latest album MUSES is inspired by Surrealism and the artistic world of the interwar period. Conceived as an imagined musical salon, it draws inspiration from Kiki de Montparnasse, André Breton, Lee Miller, Tamara de Lempicka, Luis Buñuel, René Magritte, Man Ray and Nikos Engonopoulos. Paxinos’ work extends into orchestral music, film and visual projects, moving freely between jazz, composition and cinematic storytelling.