From Sotiria Bellou to Mario and from Tzeni Vanou to Giannis Kalantzis, countless folk vocalists have sang about komboloi, this tool of relaxation that has acquired multiple symbolisms in the context of Greek song. Komboloi is a symbol of friendship but also of abandonment when its holder plays with...
Today, we begin a 2-day mini tribute to a typically Greek object that has inspired numerous Greek songs. Worry beads (or “komboloi”) are a string of beads manipulated with one or two hands and, apart from entertaining and relaxing multiple generations of Greeks, they have inspired numerous folk son...
The cities of Greek song – foreign and desolate, lonely or for two, with love or with darkness. The cities of Polyxeni Karakoglou and Katerina Kyrmizi, of Victoria Tagouli and Rita Antonopoulou and Elli Paspala, of Kostas Thomaidis and Kostas Mantzios. “In this city, you left me alone / and I am a t...
Today, we will be stopping at the crossroads of two arts, music and cinema, through selections from Hadjidakis' soundtracks for films such as Blue, Topkapi, America America, Sweet movie and Faccia di spia. This GME broadcast was supposed to be part of our week-long tribute to the 100th anniversary of...
Today, we are celebrating “Polytechneio”, i.e. the uprising of the Athens Polytechnic School on November 14-17, 1973, which marked the struggle against the Greek dictatorship of 1967-74. Our track list includes songs with direct references to the events, as well as others that focus on the themes of ...
Today, here at GME, we are celebrating lyricist Lefteris Papadopoulos’ 90 years of life, creativity and endless contribution to Greek song. And we are doing that by highlighting his more erotic side, a side replete with powerful images of love, loss and devotion. A moon kissing with the stars, an e...
There are many things that one can say about lyricist, writer and film director Alekos Sakellarios, and we will indeed be saying many things about him and his contribution aboard today’s GME. But for me, Sakellarios is, above all, the one who wrote the lyrics of my favourite song: “In life there are...
This week, we have been celebrating five important poets and lyricists who have left a notable mark on Greek song and today we turn to my number one, the poet whom I consider the greatest not only in Greece but globally, a true master situated at the crossroads of political vision and existential despair....
This week, we have been celebrating five important poets and lyricists who have left a notable mark on Greek song and today we turn to my number one, the poet whom I consider the greatest not only in Greece but globally, a true master situated at the crossroads of political vision and existential despair....
French poet Arthur Rimbaud, who passed away on this day, November 10, 1891, is considered a leading figure of world poetry. Literary critics have pointed to his pioneering role in promoting a variety of aesthetic currents, including symbolism and surrealism. Naturally, Rimbaud has been present in this...
Our week-long journey across the fields of “entechno” (art) song ends today with yet another overdose of emotion, lyricism and sensitivity – this time from albums recorded in 1994. Indicatively, Anastasia Moutsatsou sings the words of Giorgos Andreou: “If love is a light in the darkness / you are my ...
Musically, the early 1990s are a period replete with surprises and originality; in 1993, indicatively, we come across the deeply emotional ballads of Alexandros Dimas, the lyrical songs of Notis Mavroudis, the playful masterpieces of Nena Venetsanou and the folk robustness of Vangelis Korakakis. These...
Rhythms drawn from Greek tradition, sophisticated melodies, modern musical instruments, lyrics of a highly poetic quality. Art song creatively assimilated the folk and rebetiko tradition, while remaining open to a selective incorporation of contemporary elements and currents. The 1990s form the spring...
Does it exist or not? Is it alive or dead? A vibrant artistic movement or a construction of record labels? This is the famous debate over the art song and its existence. The questions are not only of philological but also of practical importance, as they concern a large volume of current musical production....
Throughout the week that starts today, we shall be exploring the first half of the 1990s and how the discography of these years shaped Greek song with the advent of “entechno”, art song. Today’s destination? My favourite songs from year 1990. Expect masterpieces performed by the “usual suspects” of art so...
Today, we are remembering a deeply sentimental poet who was born on this day, October 31, 1888. Napoleon Lapathiotis is a recurrent “passenger” aboard GME, but today we focus on how he has been approached by contemporary composers. Stella Gadedi, Giannis Kontaratos, Dimitris Maramis, Martha Menahem and...
This week, here at GME, we have been pinpointing the position of poetry in modern Greek song through the work of contemporary composers and today we are remembering an existentialist poet who was born on this day, October 30, 1896. Kostas Karyotakis is a key figure not only in Greek poetry, but also...
Today, we turn to a set of relatively recent releases that stand at the crossroads of two worlds, poetry and music. Composers such as George Kagialikos, Alexandros Gourgoulios and Giorgos Komboyannis demonstrate that Greek art song has not only a glorious past but also a fascinating present, with explorations...
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