Aristides “Aris” Hadjipanteli slays his audience when he picks up his bouzouki.
It’s not what you think. A bouzouki is a Greek version of the lute, a stringed musical instrument. Aris, 17, a first-generation American of Greek and Cypriot parents, is a professional bouzouki performer. He is also a terrific Greek folk dancer.
The teen is an International Baccalaureate senior at Annapolis High School, ranked academically among the top three in his class and secretary of the school’s chapter of the National Honor Society.
“The young man is completely driven and dedicated to not only his education but also to his community,” said school counselor Lou Bedolla.
“He is extremely proud of his family and his Greek heritage. Aris has shared some of that pride with me by inviting me to attend the Greek festival that his church holds each year. These things are what define Aris. I see him as a leader to both his peers and to those communities that he is so involved in.”
Aris possesses dual U.S. and Cyprus citizenship, as his father is a refugee from the Turkish and Greek fighting on the Mediterranean island that erupted suddenly in July 1974. More than 180,000 residents of Greek ancestry were permanently displaced during the violence. The Hadjipanteli family fled with only what they could carry. Since then, Turkey has occupied the part of the island where his father’s family resided peacefully for generations with Turkish and Greek neighbors.
His dad, Ioannis “John” Hadjipanteli, now a certified public accountant in the Maryland State Comptroller’s office, lived for a while in Nicosia, near the center of Cyrpus. Later, he moved to London to attend college. There, he met his wife Marista, born in Britain of Greek parents. They married and moved to Annapolis, where several family members had already settled.
Aris’ mother is a customer representative for AA Orthopedics. His sister, Sophia, 16, is an IB junior at Annapolis High. The family’s dog is, ironically, a Maltese named Pierre (Malta is another large Mediterranean island).
The surname Hadjipanteli, Aris explained, is a Cypriot mix of Greek and Arabic. The island of Cyprus, the third largest in the Mediterranean Sea, has long been a crossroads between European and Middle Eastern cultures.
Noting Aris is extremely active in the Sts. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church on Riva Road, IB instructor Phillip Greenfield said, “He wears his ethnicity like the badge of honor that it is. We should all be so comfortable in our skin … There’s a courtly, Old World-quality about this teen that makes him extremely unique.”
Greenfield added, “Some students are high-maintenance. Some are low-maintenance. Aris is no-maintenance.”
Even Aris’ IB extended essay, a 4,000-word report and cornerstone of his senior year studies, is about Greece’s role in World War II.
“My IB essay is about the Greek rejection of the Italian order for Italian troops to enter Greece freely. The prime minister, Ioannis Metaxas, rejected this with the word ‘Ohi’ meaning ‘no,’” Aris explained. After this rejection, Greece won the Greco-Italian War — it was the first allied victory of WWII.
“What followed was the Battle of Greece when Germany came in to clean up Italy’s mess, and finally the Battle of Crete,” Aris continued. “Although Greece ultimately lost the general conflict, the postponement its resistance caused was key to the delay of Hitler’s invasion of Russia. The invasion failed because it commenced too late: The Russian winter set in before Hitler’s forces could penetrate Moscow.”
Aris concluded, “In short, without the resistance of Greece, Russia may have fallen, leading to a single-front war which Germany could have possibly won leading to a completely different outcome for WWII.”
Furthering his interest in international affairs, Aris is active in the school’s Model U.N. delegation and, in February, attended a four-day Model U.N. Naimun Conference at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., attended by 3,000 young delegates from around the world.
Annapolis High isn’t the only school Aris has been attending. At his church, where he is the head altar server and a member of the Greek Orthodox Youth Association, he attended its Greek School one night weekly throughout middle school and into high school.
“I graduated in eighth grade,” Aris said, “but I took classes to help me pass the Embassy Exams. It’s a Greek International proficiency exam administered by the Greek Embassy in Washington, D.C.” He passed levels A and B, he said, and can read, write and speak Greek fluently. In his high school years, Aris also spent most summers overseas, visiting relatives in Cyprus and London.
For six years, he’s been a member of the Greek Orthodox Youth Association basketball team, competing in tournaments with other Greek Orthodox churches along the East Coast.
Aris is also part of the varsity program of the Annapolis Junior Rowing Association. Rowing in four- or eight-person shells, his team regular finishes in the top three in competitions. “I love the water and the Chesapeake Bay,” he said. “And, it’s a hell of a workout!”
President of the Raising 4 Reasons youth board, he is currently busy organizing a fundraising 5K run/walk. The youth-led group raises funds throughout the year which it then distributes to local charities as grants. The group’s theme this year is “Elimination of Poverty.” The race/walk will take place Nov. 17 at Arundel High School.
Looking ahead, he hasn’t settled on a college yet. But, he is planning to study economics, followed by an MBA degree and a career in finance or investments.
“I’m intrigued by how the economy works. I want to study it, understand how it works and how people find success in the economy.”
For the moment, however, he enjoys being a teenager in Annapolis. “I love Annapolis,” he smiled. “I love living here. I love the community.”
By Wendi Winters – For The Capital