Alkyone gave me a perfect reason to reach out to her again through her collaboration with Ourania Pateli and the experienced Alex Sid, in the soundtrack of the TV series I Magissa (The Witch) airing on ANT1. The series is hailed by critics and audiences, having already left its mark on the Greek TV landscape both for its all-star cast and the directing skills of Lefteris Haritos. The series’ soundtrack is a perfect fit to the puzzle, and by all accounts no-one would be a better pick to perform the song “Nanourisma” (Lullaby) than the sensitive and ethereal voice of Alkyone.

She recalls that teaming up with Alexandros and Ourania came very unexpectedly. “Alexandros texted me and we had a long call talking about several things, music too. At some point, he mentioned that we wanted to record a lullaby he thought would suit me like a glove. Later on he sent it to me and as soon as I listened to it, a feeling of familiarity overcame me. Ourania’s lyrics evoked images from fairy tales and savories and other precious memories I fail to put in words. The same goes with the melody. Alexandros revealed to me that the melody is indeed a lullaby he used to sing to his child, and I found that very touching,” she says.

With her trademark disarming honesty, she confesses that one of her dreams is to write a music score for a movie, to enhance with music the images of a film, a theater play or a TV series. “Cinema is responsible for some of my fondest memories and I consider it a pivotal influence both in my music and in everything I do in life. As a kid I often pictured myself as a maestra of an invisible orchestra that recorded for a film. I am into photography and video on an amateur basis, so ideally, one day, I dream of binding them together with music. To put it simply, as far as soundtracks are concerned, I find everything to be magical. Many times I feel as if music is pointing the direction of the film. I think that all of us have pictured ourselves living a scene accompanied by a particular music. And in a way, that is the case. If you come to think of it, we tend to live our lives in accordance with the music we listen to. It is as if music is breathing soul into the image. Even when you walk down the street, ride a bike, have a road trip, or just chill out in your place, every image is transformed under the spell of music!” she adds.

Almost inevitably, following a summer packed with concerts and flooded with new experiences and beautiful moments for Alkyone, our talk shifts to the recent wave of love of the younger audiences towards traditional music. Through all-day and all-night folklore revels with thousands of people, as well as feasts and concerts given by top-notch artists, traditional music keeps gaining ground, contrary to the previous decades, when a return to the roots would be inconceivable, like a taboo. As for Alkyone, she carves her own way, unforcedly interweaving English-speaking and Greek-speaking songs with an indiscernible thread, through her own prism. “Folklore revels and feasts never ceased to exist, and I can’t tell you how happy that makes me! Tradition has always been and will continue to be a part of our lives, whether it’s a trend or not. I’ve seen people having fun with traditional dances in village feasts and wedding parties, even though it would never be their music of choice while staying at home. Over the last year one can notice an intense shift towards traditional music, as most people who take pleasure in it, and mostly young people, grasp its deeper meaning and origins. It’s not about the melody or the lyrics, it’s the sense of roots. Something communicable and spontaneous that comforts that you are not all alone, but standing side by side with so many others,” she stresses.

Many argue that Thanassis Papakonstantinou, with whom Alkyone worked together for several months, has contributed greatly to this shift towards traditional music. “Last summer, I realized that Thanassis triggers a similar emotion in his concerts, without necessarily following the textbook of traditional music. The main thing is that he has incorporated traditional elements in his music in a way that oozes a sense of originality while placing it in a contemporary and up-to-date context. Strangely enough, he has managed to bring together different generations, and find that to be truly wonderful,” she admits.

Alkyone is currently working on “a bunch of new ideas”, writing, recording and taking delight in the whole process. “Many things are under way, but we haven’t finalized the dates. What I can share, though, as it has already been announced and it’s something I’m joyfully looking forward to, is a concert featuring Mikis Theodorakis songs, alongside Maria Farantouri and Alkinoos Ioannidis, in May 2024, in Vienna,” she concludes.

Photo credits: Alexia Tyriakidou