Join us on an inspiring journey through music and faith as we sit down with world-renowned pianist Dino Kartzanakis and his wife Cheryl. Dino’s extraordinary career spans over six decades, boasting performances from the Carnegie Hall to the Tower of David. But beyond the accolades and ovations lies a devout message of faith, as Dino uses his piano as a pulpit to share the gospel. In this episode, we explore how Dino’s life was impeccably orchestrated by God to touch countless lives. From his miraculous birth story to his early recognition as a prodigious talent, Dino shares how his
Hello, everyone. You’re listening to Family Talk, a radio broadcasting ministry of the James Dobson Family Institute. I’m Dr. James Dobson, and thank you for joining us for this program. Well, welcome to Family Talk, the broadcast ministry of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute. I’m Roger Marsh, and today we’re bringing you a conversation that’s been years in the making with a man whose musical gifts have touched millions of lives all around the world. Grammy Award-winning pianist Dino Kartzanakis has been captivating audiences for over six decades. decades, from sold-out performances at Carnegie Hall to becoming the first person to ever perform inside the Tower of David in Jerusalem. Dino’s extraordinary talent and showmanship have made him one of the premier performers of our time. His journey took him to the Juilliard School of Music and also European conservatories, where he studied under legendary pianist Arthur Rubinstein. He’s performed for presidents, toured across continents, and recorded more than 50 albums. But what’s truly remarkable is how God planted this gift in Dino’s heart at a very young age and how that gift has become his ministry. Music has always been more than just performance. It’s been his pulpit, his way of sharing the gospel and pointing people to Jesus Christ. And throughout his incredible career, he’s remained committed to strengthening families and encouraging the next generation, values he shares very deeply with Dr. James Dobson and our ministry here at JDFI. I had the privilege of sitting down with Dino and his wife Cheryl at our Colorado Springs headquarters not too long ago. Let’s listen into that conversation right now. Well, welcome to Family Talk, the broadcast ministry of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute. I’m Roger Marsh, and I have a confession to make. Though I grew up in a very musical family, and two of my children are professional music educators, I am somewhat biblically jealous of our next guest today here at Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk. It is our privilege to welcome Dino Kartzanakis to our broadcast. He’s a living legend. Oh, really? I’m living. Well, congratulations. And you’re legendary. I’m living for sure. Yeah, that’s for sure. Well, thank you so much.
SPEAKER 03 :
Welcome to the program. Pleasure. And my wife Cheryl’s here with us. It’s good to see you as well, Cheryl.
SPEAKER 01 :
Thank you so much. And we’re here for this wonderful gathering. Yes, it’s so good to have you here for that. And I know that your relationship with Dr. Dobson over the years, I mean, it’s very special.
SPEAKER 03 :
What a man. Yeah. What a man. He stood out to me. And what I like is that he stood, even though the majority would be against whatever his belief was, but he, even though sometimes in the minority, he stood strong and never budged one bit about the family.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, and it’s interesting when you see, I mean, your commitment to musical excellence, for example, in the ministry, I mean, that started at a very young age, you were three. Yes. And we’ll throw a little counterpoint at people here. I mean, it’s not, every now and again, we know a three-year-old will get up on a, piano stool and start pounding on the keys, right? But your story is different. Somebody noticed right away that you had a prodigy in you.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, we’ll go before I was born, okay? Because my mother was pregnant with me, and she had fallen, and the doctors had said that the baby was a stillborn child, which was me. Mm-hmm. And it was my dear grandmother. She was being Greek, you know, she was very strong. She looked like Golda Meir, if you want a picture of that.
SPEAKER 01 :
Oh, yeah, okay.
SPEAKER 03 :
But she loved God, and she knew how to pray, but she prayed me through. And she committed my life, and my mother did. Dad was not a Christian at the time, that I would someday serve the Lord. Didn’t know what it would be, but she actually saw a vision. In her little apartment on 9th Avenue in New York City near the bus terminal. I’ll never forget that place because that was filled with prayer where she prayed every day. And she had a vision of the enemy, the devil. That had a grip around her daughter’s, my mom’s waist, trying to destroy the child that was within her. Wow. And the vision was, she saw this image that took a grip on my mom, and it just squeezed, and she said immediately, in the name of Jesus. We rebuke Satan. He must go. And she lived on the fifth floor of this apartment house. And it’s really hard to believe, but it really did happen. The devil is real. There’s no doubt about it. And she actually saw that he released my mother and literally heard – The devil was running down the steps out of the apartment house.
SPEAKER 01 :
That’s how real it was.
SPEAKER 03 :
And she called my mother right after that. And she said, Helen, how are you feeling? My mom took a deep breath. She said, I’m okay. I feel better today. She said, well, let’s go to the doctor. So there’s a Greek doctor. We went to Papalopoulos or whatever. Something like that. You can die before you sign his name. Exactly. But anyway, it was a miracle. So as a result of that, of course, I was born very much alive. But it wasn’t until I was three years old and we had this upright piano in our apartment that was given to our family by some Greek relatives. They wanted to get rid of it.
SPEAKER 01 :
No, they wanted to enhance your musical experience.
SPEAKER 03 :
Exactly. Well, I didn’t play piano at that time. But they said, I asked my mother, Helen, would you like to have this piano? And she said yes. So they delivered it to the apartment, and that was the instrument that I first played. The very first song I ever played on the piano was At the Cross, At the Cross. At three years old, I walked up to the piano, and I started picking out the melody. Because I was in church. My parents, you know, sometimes I think I was born in the first pew of my church, you know. Glad Tidings Tabernacle on 228th Street, you know. And so I heard that song and came home and started playing at the one finger on the piano. And my mother kind of tiptoed behind me not to disturb me. And the Lord spoke to her spirit saying, this is the gift that I’ve given your son. Wow. He will evangelize through the piano.
SPEAKER 01 :
Interesting.
SPEAKER 03 :
Which is really an amazing thing because there’s no such thing as evangelizing with a piano, you know, in music. But fast forward, here we are. And of course, I’ve studied piano. You know, I always feel that as any young person that has an ability of some kind, you need to focus on that. First, identify what that is. And then, which my parents did, so I had to take piano lessons from Miss Smith. Sometimes I think everybody took from Miss Smith. And she would give me some music to learn. And this is really a little bit later, about five years old. And then I was able to go with the left hand, the right hand. But I played by ear that whole time until I was five. And then she’d give me these classical pieces that… And she’d say, now read your notes, Dino, as I’m playing. Well, I wasn’t interested in the notes because all I had to do is hear it. Right, right. And I’d hear it one time, and I’d go home, play it like with Smith, come back, and I’d open the book to the right page. I’m a little Greek boy. Yeah. Kind of fooled his teacher because I was pretending like I was playing by notes. So it took her a while to figure it out. I was going to say, when did you get caught?
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah, I finally got caught.
SPEAKER 03 :
And what I did, Ms. Smith calls my mother into the studio and says, you know, your son has no reason for him to take piano lessons. He’s got this gift. But my mother, I really appreciate this. She insisted that I should take piano. And I’m glad I did because in the classical world, piano came in, you know, studying piano, which I did. Majored in college at Juilliard. Was there anyone that you modeled yourself after? Well, I shouldn’t say that. Our church pianist. And her name was Betty Orphan, right? But she was a wonderful pianist, had a wonderful touch. And I’d listen to her Every Sunday. So I kind of, she admired her playing. And so I would say she, but later on in life, it would have been Rubenstein, Horowitz, and all these great pianists. Actually, I studied in Europe. Rubenstein had a master class there. Nadia Boulanger was the music educator, the amazing lady. And so the Lord had opened some wonderful doors for me to learn from some of the best people.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah, it’s incredible to think that you had the inner gift, the ear training that you were able to give yourself with Ms. Smith, and then the classical training, and then to be able to move through college and into your young adult years. And I smile every time I think of your grand piano performance. And being an evangelistic tool. And that’s just not something you think of as, but early on.
SPEAKER 03 :
It’s my pulpit, really. We’ve seen lives touched by the power of God through music, anointed music. We always ask the Holy Spirit to be with us. As I play, I really always, I couldn’t do without the Holy Spirit. You know, that’s what really communicates.
SPEAKER 01 :
No question. No question. And it’s just such a joy to get to know Dino Kartzanakis and his wife Cheryl today here on Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk as we talk about, Six decades of musical praise. I mean, from arguably the most prolific pianist in the kingdom today right now. I don’t think anybody has a shot at coming close to how many albums you’ve recorded, how many concerts you’ve given, how many millions of people you’ve impacted through television and other sources of media, too. It’d probably be exhausting if you sat there and tried to tally it all up.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, I’m thankful that I’ve encouraged… young, inspired young pianists. Matter of fact, we do our ministry, Dino and Cheryl International Ministry. We give scholarships to young pianists. Like when I perform in some city, prior to going there, we get tapes or video of these young pianists from seven to 16 years old. And we audition them. And then we present them. A scholarship, $1,000 check so they could put it towards their music. Wonderful. So this is, again, encouraging young people to work on their gift. And because I believe that God really expects us to do our very best in whatever we do. And that’s why Dr. Dobson and his ministry, I mean, there are times he stood alone. Yeah.
SPEAKER 01 :
For what he believed, you know? I love that. I love the fact that you recognize that in him and he saw that in you. When did you first meet him? Well, you know, of course, we live in Branson, Missouri.
SPEAKER 03 :
And that’s, you know, the theaters, so many musical theaters.
SPEAKER 01 :
You’ve done a show there for how many years?
SPEAKER 03 :
We’ve done shows there for a long time. And big productions, you know, the dancers and the costumes and so on. But at the end, I always present. the true meaning of life, you know. And it just so happened that Dr. Dobson and Shirley were in the audience. And I got to tell you, this has never happened before in our show. We’ve played this many. That particular night, Shirley and I were dancing on, it was a waltz or something. And she wears these fabulous gowns, you know, and this was a real big gown. And And I fell. I tripped over her. Oh, no. Over the gown. Oh, no.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yes.
SPEAKER 03 :
I did. So anyway, that was the night. That’s how I remember it.
SPEAKER 04 :
And we both hit the ground rather hard. Awesome.
SPEAKER 01 :
Awesome. And the Dobsons were there to cheer you on. They were there, yeah.
SPEAKER 04 :
And they were there to pray for us that we would survive the fall. They were.
SPEAKER 03 :
But we’ve known Dr. Dobson, who doesn’t, you know, and his ministry of working with families and helping so many people, parents, to raise their children in the right way.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yeah. And I can see his influence in your work. Yes. The fact that he’s such an encourager of people in all different walks of life, you know, to take your ministry to the next level. Yes, yes.
SPEAKER 04 :
And we haven’t said that we have children. We have two daughters. We have four grandchildren. And they have been educated because of Dr. Dobson’s books and ministry. They have learned so much. And they adore the ministry that Dr. Dobson has put forth for years and years, all of them.
SPEAKER 01 :
That’s so key to hear that type of story because we’re hearing it a lot. We hear it from a lot of parents and grandparents. He has influenced so many families. Literally to the next generation and the next and the next. And you guys are living a loving testimony to that.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, he’s in heaven right now. Yes. And he’s with the Lord. His timing or God’s timing was not perfect for him to come here. to the throne of God. I mean, I’m sure he’s just an amazing place. But his teaching still has influence on the family. I mean, I really believe Cheryl and I are praying today As this ministry continues, it’ll continue to grow. Because it’s, like I said, what he teaches is still, 30 years ago, is still relevant for today’s family.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yes. Well, the beautiful thing about basing your ministry on eternal principles. Yes. You know, and the fact that, like, I was… noticing that you have an album, Sanctuary Sound, where you’re talking about hymns. The hymns. What is it about those things that we learned as children, and you hear them again in a later season of life, and all of a sudden they take on a deeper meaning?
SPEAKER 03 :
I’m glad you brought up about the hymns, because one day, well, this is when Dr. Billy Graham passed away. I decided to get on Facebook. We’ve never done that before. And I wanted to just play the music that you would have heard at Billy Graham Crusade. And these were the great hymns of the church. Bev Shea singing.
SPEAKER 01 :
Right?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah. So I did. It was amazing. The response, 50,000 people. Wow.
SPEAKER 01 :
Nice.
SPEAKER 03 :
And it was as though the Lord spoke to my heart saying, see, this is what you need to do. We need to revive the hymns because they’ve fallen away. And I love the new things too, not all of it, but things that are really anointed, I’m sure, were written. But the hymns are like sermons in themselves. So as a result of that, we put out a hymn book. And in that hymn book, I selected 100 hymns, 101 actually. And I asked Cheryl if she would write on the opposite page of the hymn a little history about the hymn.
SPEAKER 01 :
Oh, wonderful.
SPEAKER 03 :
A little devotional with scripture and a prayer at the end. And God has really blessed it. People are hungry. For the hymns again. I mean, really, they’re just fantastic.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, they’re hungry for the truth. The truth. And as Cheryl, you were saying, they want to know that there is a truth, that it’s helpful and beneficial. And of course, God’s truth is truth. I mean, he’s the author of truth. So the principles you’re teaching, whether it’s through song, whether it’s through stories with kids, stage productions, whatever the gifts and talents that we have, we have to use them. And I know that Dr. Dobson had a tremendous gift of communication. I mean, just… Par none. Par none, yeah. There’s no one who could compare with him. And you, in the same way, have that musical gift. And you too have the, I mean, the fact that you can work together in ministry and in marriage. Yes. And still, for those who are listening right now, we don’t have the cameras going, but if you could see the way Cheryl looks at Dino. As a husband, I’m going… I want that 40 years into marriage. I mean, you do. I mean, because there’s that partnership. For one, you know, you are.
SPEAKER 03 :
And again, with Dr. Dobson, I keep bringing him back because it’s very important that people understand what an amazing ministry he still has. And I’m going to say this again, like I said at the beginning of the interview, he stood strong. when he was accused and whatever the enemy was trying to destroy. Sometimes he may have been alone in this, but he did it. He believed it. He believed in the truth. You know what I’m saying? The majority may have not agreed with it, but he stood for what was right. And as a result of that, God really blessed and favored his life in such a way that, I mean, you turn around everywhere, you know, you look, people who have families. We’re in Christian circles, you know, we travel, although we’ve done Carnegie Hall and some other secular things, but the influence he’s had on the family is… It’s just amazing. It’s fantastic.
SPEAKER 01 :
So that ministry will continue, no doubt. Yes, we are fully anticipating a long and healthy future for the James Dobson Family Institute. Oh, it’s going to be amazing. We call it a dynamic legacy because now the doctor is with the Lord, but the teachings live on. And the principles live on.
SPEAKER 03 :
The vision is still there.
SPEAKER 01 :
It is. It absolutely is. We may have to use new tools, more current. The way that we are presenting the material and the legacy continuing to the different platforms. You brought up an example that I think kind of mirrors where we are when you were discussing… when Billy Graham passed away, and you took to Facebook, a social media platform, to play old-time hymns. Exactly. And so here’s something from our past that is eternal, and you just found a different platform for it, and 50,000 people showed up. I mean, that’s the life that we’re in right now. That’s it. And that’s what we’re experiencing here at the James Dobson Family Institute. And your kind words, Dino, regarding the doctor and his life and legacy, and the fact that you still remain friends even after that mishap. Oh, yes. With the ballroom spinning and everything. Not that you would never, but I’m sure that’s the kind of thing Dr. loved. You were out there doing what God called you to do. And tumbles happen. It’s how you recover from those tumbles. That’s what he was saying.
SPEAKER 03 :
And you know, in our ministry, maybe different from some, it’s music, it’s entertainment. Well, we always say, you know, we’re entertainers, but we’re first Christians. Yeah, absolutely. You know, we always will present the message that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and he came to the third, was born in a manger, grew up to become the Savior of this world, and soon coming King. Yes, amen. And we should invite him into our hearts.
SPEAKER 01 :
You know, it’s interesting when I was thinking about your role in music and how you could have very easily found a good living playing the piano. And you recognized, though, because of the spiritual impact in your life from your mother, your grandmother, all the people that were speaking into it at the time, you knew that God had a higher calling for you than just winding up being an accompanist somewhere or directing a choir. Whatever, yeah. Whatever it was. And the fact that you, with your instrument and your abilities, and the two of you now with your ministry, have been able to literally crisscross the globe.
SPEAKER 03 :
And God has blessed us tremendously. Every day, the favor that he gives us. When you stay in his word, and you put it in your heart, and… You live it, he will give you favor. Amen. And bless us, whatever, financially and with health and, you know, and it’s just, it’s a great way to live. And everyone who’s listening right now needs to know that Jesus Christ is such a loving Father that he wants to give us the desires of our heart within his perfect will. And it’s the only way to live today. Amen. Until one day… The trumpet of the Lord will sound and we’ll be caught up in the air in a twinkling of an eye. I may be playing piano when I get to heaven, but it’ll be all new music.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yes, yes, that’s for sure. New and eternal. It is amazing. And my dad used to tell me this as a music educator. When I was trying out for sports and not making teams, he’d say, well, that’s okay. Stick with an instrument, stay with a choir, because you could keep doing that long after those athletes can’t. perform. And I’m sitting here watching the two of you saying, he was right. Darn it. Dad was right again. Always was. But he’s 92 and he still enjoys music. And you guys have had so many decades and there’s no slowing. I don’t see him slowing down anywhere. There’s no retirement.
SPEAKER 03 :
You said something about sports and so on, but I never got into sports except for ping pong. I love ping pong. Okay. That’s a sport. That’s a tough one. But we admire athletes, you know. Of course, Cheryl’s an avid fan of the football team. Okay. You know, the guys were out there playing football and all that. Yes. The Lord gave me this gift, and this was my athletic work. And because I had to work on my technique. And you have to go through, in any occupation, kind of through that period where you have to learn and study and spend time in your major. And then someday it’s going to bloom. Like right now, I’m 83 years old. You are not. Yeah, yeah, 83. Wow. Yeah. But anyway, I’ve learned a lot. I still practice. But the way I play now, you know, for the past maybe 10 years, I have felt such a freedom because of all that study. I just play, you know, and it just comes. The technique is there and the harmonies, and it becomes so easy. And the people sense that.
SPEAKER 02 :
Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER 03 :
In my audience, I really pray when I walk out on stage that they will experience the music that I’m playing. If it’s a hymn, and I usually play hymns that people know. Right. So they hear the words, and they’ll receive the message. And of course, Cheryl sings, and then we talk and share about our family. We’re big on family, you know. We’ve got two daughters. We’ve got a lot of grandchildren. We’ve got a hundred great-grandchildren, four greats. Wow. We’re into the family. Big time, like Dr. Dobson has taught.
SPEAKER 01 :
Sure. And that’s what Scripture talks about, about the next and the next and the next generation. Yes. We’re really talking about four generations here. And you guys are living it, having four generations in your family that are still very active and hearing that consistent witness. And I appreciate so much, Dino, the fact that you mentioned that Dr. has stood up in the culture and not necessarily taken a heavy… political stance, he just takes a biblical stance. Biblical truth.
SPEAKER 03 :
And biblical truth will be controversial enough. The enemy will be out there to destroy. That’s what he does. That’s his job. But not Dr. Dobson. And we as Christians need to stand strong. Stand strong. When the enemy comes around, it’s up here in our mind. We need to learn how to just call on the name of Jesus. There is something about that name. Yeah, there really is.
SPEAKER 01 :
I remember listening to the Gaithers, because a lot of that was in our church choir music. And in my youth, I thought, well, this is sweet. But I didn’t know. As I’m getting older, something about that name brings me to tears. There’s something about that name. Because he lives, I was part of a church fellowship for 30 years, and that was our sending song on Easter Sunday. Every single year.
SPEAKER 03 :
There’s power in that name. Yeah, absolutely. There’s hope. There’s healing in the name of Jesus. And we did call on his name. And whenever adversaries, whatever comes your way, whether it’s sickness or depression or, you know, there’s a lot of that going on right now. This is where Christians have the upper hand because they know who to call upon that will give peace in the midst of their storm. Amen. Joy, happiness.
SPEAKER 01 :
Thank you. Well, Dino mentioned something today that really resonates with our mission here at Family Talk. He spoke about how Dr. James Dobson stood strong for biblical truth, even when he stood alone. Friends, that commitment to truth is exactly what we’re preserving and expanding through the Dr. James Dobson Memorial Matching Grant. Recently, a group of dear friends of our ministry established this historic matching opportunity, providing matching funds now through December 31st, 2025 for up to $6 million. This remarkable gift is an incredible memorial and a statement of confidence for the only organization entrusted by Dr. Dobson to carry out his legacy and expand his work to new generations and geographies. Dr. Dobson’s teaching on family, marriage, and parenting just as relevant today as it was decades ago. And through this memorial matching grant, every dollar you donate will be doubled in size and impact, placing practical biblical wisdom into the hands and homes of countless families for years to come. Now, you can double your impact through this special memorial matching grant by visiting drjamesdobson.org. If you prefer, you can also make a contribution over the phone. Call a member of our constituent care team right now at 877-732-6825. Well, I’m Roger Marsh. Thanks so much for joining us today. On behalf of all of us here at the JDFI, we truly appreciate your prayers and ongoing support. And be sure to join us again next time right here for another edition of Dr. James Dobson’s Family Talk. This has been a presentation of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute.
