Ilias Lazaridis was born in 1884 in the village Alisofi (today Alisofu) in the Kars region. His nicname was Havenita because his roots were from Haviana in the Gümüşhane (Gr: Argyroupolis) province of Pontus and also Alisofete after his birth place.
Lazaridis was not only an exceptional player of the kemenche (aka Pontic lyra) but also the kemane, a 4-stringed bowed instrument related to the kemenche. As a result, he was known throughout Kars but also the neighouring communities.
In 1918 his family fled to Novorossiysk, Russia while in 1922 they settled in Greece, initially in Pireaus and then Ptolemaida. Lazaridis performed professionally in Greece and was highly regarded among his peers. He died in Ptolemaida in 1941 during Germany's occupation of Greece in WW2.
Panayiotis Moisiadis. Ilias Lazaridis (Havenites) the well known lyra player of the Caucasus. Pontiaki Estia, Issue 181, 2014, p.155-157.