Domna Samiou (12 October 1928 – 10 March 2012) was born in Kaisariani, Athens, to parents who were refugees from Baindir, a village in the Smyrna (Izmir) region. Her mother arrived in Greece in 1922, while her father, who had been a prisoner of war, joined the family shortly […]
Simon Karas (1903-1999) was a musicologist and researcher of the Greek music tradition and heritage. His lifelong research is considered by many as a key factor in the preservation of traditional music, which he recorded throughout Greece. He was born in 1903 in the village of Lepreon (former Strovitsi), of [...]
(1890-1983) A renowned kanun virtuoso, he also played the oud and the Constantinopolitan lyra. Born in Aksehir (Akşehir), Konya Province, Turkey, and died in Nea Ionia, Athens. He came to Greece after the Asia Minor catastrophe. During the German occupation, in 1941, he met Simon Karas; when the war […]
In 1971, in the midst of the military Junta period in Greece, Dionysis Savvopoulos convinced Domna to sing at the club “Rodeo”. In the following years, she performed at “Kyttaro” and “Rizes”.
Invited by Lina Lalandi, founder of the English Bach Festival and clavichordist, Domna Samiou made five appearances in the festival, presenting, in what could be the first time, the authentic traditional music of Greece to the English audience.
1977 ⬥ Domna Samiou is a nice person and, I am sorry to say that, be careful how you treat her, because she’s a sensitive thing and needs special treatment. And anyone who knows her closely can understand what I’m about to say: she has this strange quality, that is, [...]