Αντρονίκη

Apparently, neither the male population of Rhodes nor that of Cyprus took the challenges of feminism (or rather the wearing of trousers by women) very well..





(Credit for this discovery goes to mouxtaris84.)

Dolama dolamayı / Gavur İmam / Θα σου γοράσω μηχανήν

The song, as sung in Turkish on Cyprus, apparently talks of the 1833 uprisings against the Ottoman administration, jointly undertaken by both Greek-speaking and Turkish-speaking Cypriots.

This one is a version sung half in Greek and half in Turkish. (I could not find an exclusively Turkish-Cypriot 'traditionalist' recording.)


I did however find this 'modern' (Turkish) Cypriot version:


In Greek, the revolutionary rhetoric was replaced by a song about sewing-machines (usually danced as the first part of a suite of women's carcilama dances).



For a long time, the song was used in advertising Singer sewing-machines, with the first line of the song ('Θα σου γοράσω μηχανήν' / 'I'm going to buy you a machine' - with the rest of the song clarifying that this is a sewing-machine) answered by 'Jαι να'ν jαι... Singer' ('And it will be... a Singer').

The song at some point got exported to Turkey:


And from there ended up here:

Instruments: The extended family of long-necked lutes (tambouras/saz)

Here are performances of two songs by Christos Konstantinou:

i) a rendition of a καρjιλαμας (καρσιλαμάς/karşılama) on the saz.
This is the first part of a 5-part suite of dances (4 αντικρυστοι (karşılama) followed by the Μπάλλος) which are commonly danced in Cyprus by both Greek-speaking (see e.g. this, this&this, this) and Turkish-speaking Cypriots (see e.g. this&this).
Konstantinou, not uncommonly, combines it with the melody of this song:



ii) a few minutes later, a performance on a kiteli (a name related to the Yoruk Üçtelli (see also E. Petropoulos' take on this), and the Albanian qifteli), which the presenter says is from Cyprus and is 'commonly used' there.

The tambouras is currently relatively rare in Greek and Turkish Cypriot music, with few exceptional attempts at reviving it (e.g. this group includes a saz player). Maronites however often use the saz (see e.g. this fonē by the Solomou family, another version of which is here performed in honour of the pope), sometimes even the bouzouki (which, as its name suggests, is not unrelated to the buzuq widely used in Lebanon, by Maronites and non-Maronites alike).

[Note: I've heard that there is evidence that the 'tambouritsa' had long been played on the island of Cyprus (thank you bangungot).]

In Greek, the word tambouras (ταμπουράς) may refer to the whole family of instruments which in Turkey go under the name of saz. Under the tambouras family one may find the Cretan seven-string saz called boulgari, various forms of two-stringed instruments (often going under the name kiteli), and other similar instruments of varying sizes and names. Confusingly, the standardised tambouras that is currently in use in educational institutions in Greece is what in Turkish is called the 'Çöğür saz', i.e. a tambouras (a saz) that is slightly smaller than the baglama saz. What in Turkish is called baglama saz is what is typically referred to in Greek by the word saz or σάζι (sazi). Even more confusingly, 'baglama' in Greek refers to a kind of small tambouras (i.e. saz) that evolved into a small bouzouki (the bouzouki itself being an evolution of tambouras which at some point, either in the late 19th or the early 20th century, acquired Western-style unmovable frets). What is called in Turkish tanbur is a very long necked six-string tambouras played in Ottoman music (either plucked, or since Tamburi Cemil Bey's invention, bowed, in which case it is called yaylı tanbur), though it is also the name of this three-stringed (one single and one double) Kurdish instrument (also called Tembûr). Thus, in designating the entire family of long-necked lutes, the words tambouras and saz are interchangable; nevertheless, in designating particular standardised types of tamboura/saz, the nationalisation of these words can be stupefying.

The tambouras/saz family is not limited to the Eastern Meditteranean; its use ranges from China to Ireland and beyond. The Egyptian tomb of Nakht from around the 15th century BC contains this depiction of women playing music (thanks to P. & R. for this):

with the one in the middle playing a two-string tambouras/saz. The ancient Greeks seem to have had a similar instrument, which they called pandura/pandouris (see LSJ entry), and thought to be oriental in origin. Atheneus (Ath. 4. 183f) claims that Pythagoras considered it to have come from the red sea. There is an instrument called panduri played in eastern Georgia (see e.g. this).
Instruments of the tambouras family include:

-the dutar and tambur, used in the Uyghur Muqam of the Turkmens in the Xinjiang province of China.

-the sitar, though of course it is much more complex than the two/three-stringed instruments which are more closely related to the tambouras. Nevertheless, the sitar's complexity gradually fades out as one moves westward, for example with the Afghani tanbur or do taar, the chitrali and pashto sitar (notice that the pashto song sounds a bit like 'χρυσοπράσινο φύλλο'). I am not sure whether the Balochi saaz should be placed in this group - Balochi culture and music has a unique mixture of Persian, Arabic and Indian/Pakistani characteristics, and the saaz I think is more of an accompanying instrument, while the tambouras family instruments are often played solo.

-the Afghani (e.g. this, this), Pakistani, Taj, Uzbeki, Bashkir, Tatar, Mongol, Kazakh and Uyghur dombura/dombra/danbura/dombor/dombyra (see relevant wikipedia article). See also the slightly more distant relative, the komuz, whose name (misleadingly) sounds like the koboz, which is in turn is like an oud/laouto/lauta.

-the setar, and its neighbours: the dotar of Khorasan, the Iranian-Armenian and Azerbaijani tar, the Kurdish tanbur already mentioned, the saz of the travelling ashiqs (which UNESCO now considers to be the intangible heritage of Azerbaijan).

- the baglama saz, the baglamas, the bouzouki (see e.g. this and this microtonal bouzoukia), the bozuq (here used for playing rembetika), the tzouras, the cura saz, the tambour, the Bulgarian tambura, the Albanian kiteli, and others.

As the tambouras family moves westward, it becomes slightly more difficult to recognise. However, the laouto could be said to be a relative of the tambouras (see for example this micro-tonal Cretan laouto).

Στείλε με μάνα στο νερό

This one is another of those songs that exists in various forms in Cyprus, the Aegean, and probably also Asia Minor, as well as played in the rebetiko style. One Cypriot version can be found in this field recording from the Cyprus Music Network archive.

There is an area in Rhodes called 'Αρχάγγελος' where the local dialect closely resembles the Cypriot dialect. Γιάννης Κλαδάκης sings and plays the dodecanse lyra in this dialect (e.g. here, here), and here performs the variation of this song commonly played in Rhodes, with similar lyrics but a different melody:


In Lesvos, the same lyrics are sung to a melody remotely similar to the one from Rhodes:


Markos Vamvakaris sings the same lyrics to a melody which is similar to the above two:


Vamvakaris also sings a different song to the melody found in Cyprus:


Xilouris sings more or less the same song as Vamvakaris (with an additional 70s bassline):

Konyalim / Κόνιαλης / Η βράκα / D4 \/r4k4m4n

This one has variations in Anatolia, Cyprus, the Aegean islands and even in some regions of mainland Greece.
It's original title suggests a relation to Konya in central Anatolia, though even its Turkish recordings seem to be considered 'rumca', e.g.



The following is a variant sung in Greek. It is preceded by a Cappadocian song whose melody is at times quite similar.



The following three are Cypriot variations:





This one is played with Zurna and Dumbek at a Maronite beach party, sung in both Greek and Turkish and followed by a medley of Cypriot songs. As far as I can tell, none of these are in the Cypriot Maronite Arabic dialect, which is close to extinction (but, for anyone interested, I think this partly is in Cypriot Arabic, though it could be Turkish):



Part of the Greek lyrics of the Cypriot version made it into G. Seferis' 'Στα περίχωρα της Κερύνειας' ('Θα ήθελα να προλάβω ν' αγοράσω πανί, / σαράντα πήχες δίμιτο, για τον περιβολάρη μας τον Παναγή· / απίστευτο! τόσο, λέει, του χρειάζεται για μια βράκα ... ').

A funk(y) version of the song was made by Mariza Koch. Sadly I could only find this link to a sample (anyone who knows of a better link, please let me know)!

It was later made into the first Cypriot rap hit:

Μιχάλης Βιολάρης goes to Bollywood

This is perhaps the strangest export of music from Cyprus.



Michalis Violaris recorded this song in 1973 (?). It is loosely based on the ishia fone (example 1, example 2), which is used in tshiattista improvisation. Violaris' rendition claims it is a traditional. It is likely that the popular incorporation of this song into the performance of tshiattista (i.e. singing 'τα ριάλλια ριάλλια ριάλλια, etc, in between improvised segments) was a by-product of the song's hit status.
It possibly owes its original popularity to its use of the word 'pezevengis' the Cypriot rendition of the Turkish word 'pezevenk', meaning pimp. It's claim that all who have money in their pockets are pimps ['ππεζεβέγκης που τα 'shει στην πούγκαν'] might be seen as a predecessor to the Cypriot hip-hop group Hardcore Heads' claim that everything is a cabaret (in Cyprus a kind of quasi-brothel).
It remains to this day the cliche Cypriot song known widely across the Greek world, as is exempified by this recording by Efi Thodi.

Surprisingly enough, Demis Roussos also released his own version of the song in 1973, replacing its Cypriot dialect with English lyrics. In fact, the song was released on the album which launched Roussos' international solo career following the split-up of Aphrodite's Child.



Even more surprisingly, Roussos' rendition of the song became quite popular, popular enough to reach India (uncannily reversing the trend of Indian songs moving westward to Greece). There it was found by R. D. Burman, who used it in the soundtrack of the hit Bollywood film Sholay, in this rendering as 'Mehbooba Mehbooba':



This made the song a hit once again, leading to various reinterpetations,* e.g.:




Among these is this one by the Kronos Quartet, accompanied by a Chinese pipa:



* Thanks to C. for pointing these out, as well as for mentioning the research on goat-theft in Crete that inspired the subtitle of this blog.

Χαλεπιανός μανές, Quadukka 'l mayyas, Ada Sahillerinde, Τα μελαχροινά

This is one of those songs which were popular throughout the Eastern Mediterranean. It's Cretan title as 'Χαλεπιανός' implies that it originated from Aleppo in Syria, and its Arabic lyrics take a poetic form that is most likely pre-Islamic.





(Many thanks to Throgos for making this playlist on youtube, containing various versions of the song.)

There is a, relatively rare, Cypriot rendition of this song. Unfortunately, the only link to it I could find online was to this sample.

Αγάπησα την που καρκιάς

Source: emc, from http://www.rembetiko.gr/forums/archive/index.php/t-19429.html
Emc mentions that the same song is played in Sifnos, called 'paramana'.

It is also mentioned here that there are parallels between the Αυκορίτισσα φωνή (sung here by the legendary Andreas Mappouras), and a song sung in Sifnos. Part of the Αυκορίτισσα (μα την Αγιάν Μαρίναν μας, etc) was turned into the signal tune for Cybc radio's news (if I'm not mistaken by Marios Meletiou).

Azizie syrtos

The Azizies is a composition by the Ottoman Sultan Abdülaziz I. It has somehow survived in the folk music of the region, and is played in Cyprus.



See also this, this.

Ζεϊμπέκκικος (Zeybegi)

Ζεϊμπέκικο is a dance named after the Zeibeks, (see e.g. this) and partly associated with the Yoruk nomads (see e.g. this documentary), who are said to be the ancestry of at least some Turkish Cypriots (which might be attested to by the fact that the term Yurukkis [Γιουρούκκης] is still used in Cyprus). Given its prominence in Greek popular music, discourse regarding the origins and practice of the dance (see e.g. Giorgos Veltsos' take on it) has reached a certain level of mythologising; for example, people have come up with etymologies which associate the first part of the word ('zei') with Zeus. I have even heard it being said that to dance the Ζεϊμπέκικος properly, the ritual must involve ending the dance by slicing open one's own stomach and holding one's bowels in one's hands.

The Ζεϊμπέκικος was played in Cyprus by both Greek and Turkish speaking Cypriots prior to the import of its rembetiko form. A large number of tunes in the traditional repertoire take this form. They are often named after the region they originated from, such as in the case of the απτάλικος (abdal zeybegi),





which is performed in many 'traditional' forms throughout the Aegean and Asia Minor, as well as in rembetiko style.

Another Ζεϊμπέκικος traditionally played in Cyprus is this:





It existed in various earlier forms (known in Greece as the Ζεϊμπέκικο 'Τούρνα'), and was made famous as a rembetiko, titled Οι νέοι χασικλίδες (the new hashish-smokers):




Perhaps the Ζεϊμπέκικος that is most commonly known as somehow particularly Cypriot is the one which the Turkish Cypriots call Sarhos Zeybegi, here sung in both languages:



and here sung in its millomeno ('dirty', i.e. sexually explicit) form, if I'm not mistaken by Michalis Tterlikkas:



This a version played with tsambouna and toubaki in Mykonos



I do not know whether this is commonly played in Mykonos and/or other islands.

Είπα σου κτενίστου λλίον (Sigaramın Dumanı), etc

There’s an old recording of this song in Turkish sung by Müzeyyen Senar. (I do not know the date of the recording, would appreciate the help of anyone who does).

And also by the Bulgarian (?) Kadriye Latifova:

Kyriakou Pelagia’s rendering of the song as ‘Ειπα σου κτενίστου λλίον’ made it a ‘souxe’ [hit] in Cyprus during the 90s:

(I neither know not care about how old the song is, or where it originated.)

Another song in Pelagia's repertoire is the first in this 'potpourri'. An older rendition of a closely related variation is this.

Aman doctor

This song has been recorded with many variations, both in rural traditions and in the more urban tradition of amanes, both in Greek and Turkish.

Among its first recordings is the one by the rembetis guitarist Giorgos Katsaros, rumored to have been a friend of Al Capone, who is here seen singing it in 1995 late in his life.

He claims to have published it (‘έβγαλα’, which might imply that he created it) in 1919, though I think the first available recording by him is this one from 1928, recorded in Camden, New Jersey:

In Turkish, it seems to have been made widely disseminated and popularised through its first recording under the title Mendilim Yeşili, by New York Armenian singer Bogos Kirecciyan in 1953.
Here it is included among other versions:

It is sung on the Aegean islands, for example here by Solon Lekkas from Lesvos who performs it in the amanes style, preceded by a longer improvisation (first video below), accompanied by saz (continuously interrupted by the documentary’s unfortunate editing):

In Crete, the song takes a form which is quite similar to the Cypriot one. If I'm not mistaken (I'm no expert) the melody is here changed from the saba mode to a minor scale.

or

In Cyprus, a version of the melody is known as ‘Kotsini Trantafillia’ (Red Rose-tree). This is the song’s (almost) Cypriot variation sung by a Slovenian choir: