Youth And Teen | The MacMillan Center Hellenic Studies Program

A Musical Journey to Cyprus: Traditional Songs of Love, Sorrow, and Hope

Throughout history, Cyprus has been variously described as ‘the island of love’, ‘the birthplace of Aphrodite’, ‘the island of saints,’ and ‘the land of lemon and olive trees. In the past half century, Cyprus has also been known as a land of pain and sorrow; an island of division and loss. On this musical journey to Cyprus, Nicoletta Demetriou (voice), Nikitas Tampakis (viola), and Panayotis League (laouto) explore this varied identity, as expressed through the island’s music and song.

Tuning to the Seasons: Feast Songs of Cyprus- Vasiliki Hadjiadamou and Ensemble

Mention of Greek religious music more often than not conjures up liturgical music–singing to be precise, chanting, monophonic or in unison, neumes, modes, an archaic idiom and, its raison d’être, the Word of God. Parallel to liturgical music but independent from it, flourished for centuries an equally rich and long tradition of popular religious songs. Their composition, transmission, orchestration, musical and poetics meters, linguistic idiom as well as the lyrics themselves, are consonant with the Cypriot oral tradition of music and singing.