D C Dounis

Demetrius Constantine Dounis was born in Athens around 1894. At an early age he was a muscial prodigy, later becoming a doctor and serving in World War I. It was after the war that he began treating professional musicians from the world’s major symphonies and developing his teaching...

Dounis created a science of how the natural violinist or cellist played and called it, “The Science of Expressive Technique”. He was a brilliant diagnostician and as soon as anyone would play for him, he immediately understood that player’s specific problems and knew the solutions. 

He then proceeded with all his remedial methods for re-establishing the native instincts or fundamentals, but always in a uniquely personalized way.

Dounis would give students exercises that counteracted their conditioning. Each exercise was unique for a particular problem.  Whether he was clear or enigmatic, Dounis always worked to draw out the native instincts.  It was like a prescription a doctor gives to a patient.  He cannot give every patient the same one. First diagnosis, then cure. By questioning students he brought them to conclusions based on their observations.

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