Our blog is celebrating four years and almost 70 posts. Its head title is taken from Eleftheria’s Arvanitaki famous song (Στην αρχή του τραγουδιού), and it was the opening song in our blog.
“Ach, in the beginning of the song the ach is written” say the first lines. “It is sweet, it is bitter, it is dreamy too”. This is what our blog about; the people behind the songs, and how their personal experience, emotions and stories had became beautiful songs; in the words of this song, how the personal “ach” is wandering away to give himself gracefully in “sweet smells, in colors, in melodies” so our second title is “Stories about people and Greek songs”; the blog is about people as much as it is about music and I feel that people outside Greece may find interest in it.
And why Eleftheria Arvanitaki’s song was chosen? My journey into Greek music had begun 12 years ago as I heard Eleftheria’s singing and was captured instantly buy its magic. It was a feeling I will never forget, close to falling in love…
We are selecting songs that we love but also that we feel appealing to non-Greeks; the lyrics are translated into English, mainly by subtitles in the videos. From the beginning two friends have been accompanying the blog, Anastasia Thanela from Athens who is making a wide research for each post and the singer Katerina Siapanta from Thessaloniki who helps me a lot in understanding the meaning of the Greek lyrics. Without their help, I couldn’t manage!
(Press cc for English caps)
Lyrics: Kostas Goudis, Nikos Ksidakis
Music: Nikos Ksidakis
Ah, in the beginning of the songs
the ah is written
It is sweet it is bitter
it is dreamy too
Ah where you set out, where are you off to
where you go and wander away
Hours in creeks you lost
and hours, out in the mountains
Ah the songs are a blessing
so take it with you
In the sweet smells, in the colors
in the music, gracefully give yourself
avinishri
In The Beginning Of The Song 