At the beginning of the 20th century, Europe is living in peace and prosperity. The “Belle Époque” is an outgrowth of previous important historical events and developments. The networks that are created and which evolve funnel both people and their products, tangible and intangible. It is within this multi-layered world that sound recording and sound reproduction is invented. Early record labels send mobile crews literally all over the world to record local musicians. The range of the repertoire is endless. Cosmopolitanism in large urban centers favors polystylisms and polymorphisms. Colonialism, revolutions, conflicts, refugee flows; the theater, cinema, radio, photography, orchestras’ tours, but also circulations in all kinds of commercial channels in a world that evolves dynamically and anisotropically, form a complex network of “centers” and “peripheries” in alternating roles setting musical idioms in motion, both literally and figuratively. The network in which the Greek-speaking urban popular song participates, constantly conversing with its co-tenants, is magnificent. Discography has already provided important tools in understanding the relationships that developed between “national” repertoires. The result of this ongoing research is “Cosmopolitanism in Greek Historical Discography”.

Naturally, in the large urban centers of the Ottoman Empire around the Mediterranean Sea, the “conversations” of the Greek-speakers with their Turkish-speaking Muslim “co-tenants”, the Catholic Greek-speakers, the Armenians, the Sepharadi and Ashkenazi Jews, the Levantine Protestants, and the Europeans and the Americans, were more than intense. Very often, the scope of this network extends to the Balkans, to Eastern and even to a part of Central Europe. Especially regarding relations between Orthodox and Muslims, the relevant evidence demonstrates the musical exchanges between them and elucidate an ecumene where everyone contributed to the great musical “melting-pot”, and where everyone may draw from it, as well as redeposit it, in a new form, with a reformulated text and its meaning, with sometimes clear and sometimes blurred references to its pre-text, until someone else pulls it out again, through the “melting-pot”, so that it becomes clear that there is no end in this recreational and dynamic process where fluidity prevails. A case that comes from this type of repertoire is the song “Ti se melei esenane apo pouthe eimai ego”.

This is one of the most popular songs of the Greek-speaking repertoire, which was recorded many times. For example:

- “Ti se melei esenane”, Giorgos Vidalis, Odeon Gο 278 – GA 1153 – A 154256, Athens, 1926
- “Ti se melei esenane”, Marika Papagkika, Columbia W 205569 – 56061-F, New York, April 1927
- “Ti se melei esenane apo pouthe eimai ego”, Angeliki Karagianni, Balkan Records No 820-B, USA, circa 1948

In this particular performance, the introduction of the song is different from its older recordings.

The tune can also be found in the Turkish-speaking Armenian reprtoire that was recorded in America. More specifically, in the 1940s, the Armenian Mary Vartanian recorded in New York, in Turksih language, the song "Hojan aman Ojan" (Kaliphon D-723-B).

It is worth mentioning the recording of the song under the name "Tee Say Mallee", by Slim Gaillard, in America, in 1945 (Atomic A-231-1). Based on his own accounts, around 1928, when he was twelve years old, Gailard was left in Crete, where he must have heard the song in question.

Panagiotis Tountas’ song "Aeroplano tha paro" (Odeon GO 1942 – 31032B, Athens, 1933) uses the music of the introduction of the song "Ti se melei esenane" (Odeon 278 – GA 1153 – A 154256, Athens, 1926). At the same time, Tountas’ song borrows the musical theme from the beginning of the lyrics of the song "Telegrafin tellerine".

The oldest recording of this song seems to have been made in Moscow. According to the database that emerged from Alan Kelly's research, the following information, most probably with multiple spelling mistakes, was found:

"Telegrafnin Telleri", Zonophone 1366 – X-6-102037, KRIMSKO-TATAR MUZIKANTI, SAMI MEMET OGLU, ABDUREFI MEMET OGLU, APASS SANDICHE, HALIL RAHME, AFUZ RASIM, Moscow, September 8, 1910

In any case, the song was recorded many times in Turkish historical discography, both by Armenian artists and by Muslims. For example:

- "Telegrafin Telerine, Canto", Columbia 89574-1 – CO 32001-F, Vahan Boyajian, New York, around December 1923
- "Telegrafin teleri", Victor B 32928 – 78193, Moise Effendi and Smyrna Quartette, New York, June 25, 1925
- "Telgrafin Telleri", HMV OTB 2278 – AX 2606, Zeki Müren, Constantinople (Istanbul), around the 1940s

The way in which Tountas uses and arranges popular and wandering musical tunes, often taking small formulas and building, based on them, new compositions, is remarkable.

In America where this recording took place “national” repertoires live a new, parallel life. This situation is not static and, to a large extent, is molded by discography, which attends to and “tunes” the overlapping relationships that have already developed in the “Old World”. Repertoires communicate with each other once again; a familiar and already dynamic condition in Europe. The circulation of musicians is already a reality before the 20th century with theatrical and musical performances tours, but also with the networks of music publishing houses. Discography is not only embedded in this context, but also plays a key role in its transformation. This time, the network is adjusted in a programmatic manner, under new terms and via new paths.

Research and text: Leonardos Kounadis and Nikos Ordoulidis