Anna Ioannou
Anna is a recent addition to FullCircle (fall 2003), bringing new sounds to the group with her talents on keyboard, flute, and vocals. She has an enthusiasm and energy that is contagious and radiant.
The daughter of a Macedonian mother and a Greek father, Anna was born and raised in Toronto. She tells us "As post-war immigrants, my parents struggled to give my sisters and me the opportunities that they were denied. Mom's passion for learning was surpassed only by her love of music. I remember her taking us, at an early age, to the children's concerts at Massey Hall. The stereo in our North Toronto home was always playing. Music icons like Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra shared the spotlight with the classical composers as well as our family’s cultural music."
Influenced by a variety of music forms, Anna would listen to "nearly everything", from Vivaldi to Glenn Miller, to Aretha Franklin, to pop, rock and folk music. At age 10, she began studying the piano with the Royal Conservatory. Learning to play the flute soon followed.
As a young adult Anna sang in local choirs, most notably as a member of an Eastern Orthodox choir. Traveling to the United States for symposiums, she spent 4 years learning Byzantine chants "dating back to the 6th century, the pre-Christian style of this church music is haunting. It's chromatic and diatonic nature, relatively unchanged to this day, is truly unique."
While involved with the choir, Anna also joined an ethnic dance troupe that performed for various venues, including the then popular Toronto "Caravan". After graduating from Seneca College, she embarked on a career in human resources and music took a temporary "break".
Anna met her husband John in 1988 and they were married the following year. In 1992, following the birth of the first of three children, she became a full-time mom. The family moved from North Toronto to Uxbridge in 1998 and became active participants in the community.
With all three children in school, Anna ventured into new creative outlets. While starting a home based business in fine desserts, she participated in local community theatre. She is hoping that her latest endeavor, freelance writing, will add yet another dimension. As her children began their own music lessons, Anna realized how much she had missed playing. This was to soon change when she met Norah Love and Reid Wilson of FullCircle at a music venue in August of 2003. The group invited Anna and her husband John to "jam" with them. After several sessions, it became evident that it was a "good fit" and the couple was asked to join full time. Excited to be singing and playing again, Anna is looking forward to making great music with FullCircle.