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Ever since antiquity, music transcription has been the intrinsic way of visual representation of sound, sometimes in detail and sometimes in the form of a guide. Throughout time, the visual capture of music has been the only way to store and preserve it over time, but also the exclusive means of reproducing it. In any case, visual transfer should be considered as an auxiliary tool, since oral dissemination and storage in the memory of artists have been the most timeless techniques for the diffusion of music through time and space. During Europe's so-called "classical" musical period, with its most powerful centers of production, such as today's Austria, Germany, France and Italy, and especially in its path towards Romanticism, music transcription, that is, the musical score, was considered by some composers as the very embodiment of their work.
Understandably, in the modern capitalist world, music transcription, as the primary tool for the substantialization of music, brought under its purview repertoires that were not connected, were not disseminated, and did not function on the basis of their transcription. This offered to the music product sales centers an additional tool to expand their action network: non-scholar musics acquired a convenient way of circulating them, enhancing their popularity, even in places very far from those of their original creation. At the end of the 19th century, however, the phenomenon of sound recording and reproduction rearranged relationships and disrupted the status quo of publishing houses, claiming a share of the market, offering a product that was extremely complete and immediate. The publishing houses tried to react with legal measures, but it became impossible to stop the dynamics of the new phenomenon: the prevalence of commercial discography was now a fact, for most of the 20th century.
As far as non-scholar music is concerned, commercial printed musical scores were publications of the musical texts of songs or instrumental pieces (for the publishing activity in Greece see Lerch-Kalavrytinos, 2003: 4-5). For the needs of musical scores, the songs were arranged mainly (but not only) for piano or for piano and voice, generally without complex performance requirements. Multi-instrumental or technically demanding orchestrations were systematically avoided. The lyrics were printed below the notes of the melodic development of the singing parts and, sometimes, their translations into other languages. For the most part, the musical scores were two or four pages long, and came with a themed front and back cover.
This four-page musical score contains the songs "Zechra" with music by Michalis Sougioul and lyrics by Aimilios Savvidis and "Kritikes mandinades" with music by Michalis Sougioul and lyrics by Nikos Gounaris. Immediately after the start of the Greek-Italian war in 1940, the song "Zechra" was arranged with new lyrics by Mimis Traiforos under the title "Paidia, tis Ellados paidia".
The black and white cover is dominated by the full-page photo of the singer Sofia Vempo. The authors of the song and the publisher are also mentioned. On the second page, it bears the collector's stamp "Syllogi Foti Sarri" (Fotis Sarris' collection), and "A. Varthalitis" is written on the third page. The musical score of the song "Kritikes mantinades" is on the black and white cover.
The musical text of the song "Zechra" (pages 2-3) is included in a musical score with a system of three staffs (two for piano and one for singing) in which the lyrics of both versions of the song are written. Half of the lyrics from "Paidia, tis Ellados paidia" are written, apparently due to lack of space. The musical text is accompanied by the characterizations "tango-romance oriental" and "polemiki parodia sto skopo tis Zechras" (warlike parody in Zechra's tune).
The song "Zechra" falls within the scope of exoticism, under the ethnocentric lens of which the Western world came into contact, among others, with othernesses such as the peoples of the East and its musical universe. The meaning of exoticism concerns, on the one hand, the characteristics of that which is outside the sphere of identity and, on the other hand, the attraction exerted by that which has such characteristics. The widespread acceptance of the phenomenon is obvious: the multidimensional linguistic, musical and visual wealth accumulated around and within exoticism created a common stock of knowledge that perpetually feeds the collective and individual imaginary. The locations represented in exoticism, that is, the East, Latin America, Spain, Hawaii, are par excellence imaginary, disconnected from the real world. They are revealed like a theatrical stage, with alternating scenes, where fantasies are dramatized, overwhelm the senses and release intense emotions, offering the "visitor" an ideal experience, outside the limitations of the conventional world (see the digital collection "Exoticism in Greek-speaking repertoires").
In Greek historical discography, the song was recorded for the first time in 1938, in Athens, by Sofia Vempo, accompanied by the Michalis Sougioul's orchestra ("Zechra", His Master's Voice OGA 844-1 – AO 2515 and reissue by RCA-Victor OGA 844-1 – 26-8027 and Orthophonic OGA 844-1 – S-471-A). In the same year, the song was also recorded by Koula Nikolaidou with Theodoros Papadopoulos’ orchestra (Parlophone Go 3197 – B. 21992-I).
The declaration of war by fascist Italy and its victorious confrontation by the Greek army in Albania mobilized the forces of Greek music. From October 1940 to April 1941, creators of all genres recorded the events in new songs or adapted lyrics with similar themes to older hits.
Playwright and lyricist Mimis Traiforos, later husband of Sofia Vempo, would adapt lyrics referring to the Greco-Italian war to the melody of "Zechra". In December 1940, Sofia Vempo, accompanied by Michalis Sougioul's orchestra, recorded in Athens the song "Paidia, tis Ellados paidia" (Columbia C.G. 2136 – D.G. 6575)). The recording was reissued in the US (Cοlumbia USA CO 32207 – 7221-F) but also in Turkey (Columbia Turkey C.G. 2136 – DT 181).
The appearance of the song in Turkish discography, however, is not limited to the above-mentioned reissue. Probably in 1939, Birsen Alan with the Park Otel Dans Orkestrasi recorded in Istanbul the song "Zehra" with Turkish lyrics (Odeon CO 3634 – LA 270322 and Odeon CO 3634 – P.L. 68). It should be mentioned that the other side of the record includes another cover of a Greek song, "Cemile", with Turkish lyrics by İhsan Sensoy (Odeon CO 3540 – LA 270322 and Odeon CO 3540 – P.L. 68). It is the song "Tzemile" with music by Theodoros Papadopoulos and lyrics by Tsamas [Minos Matsas], which was recorded in Athens in 1938 by Alkis Pagonis and the Papadopoulos Vocal Trio (Columbia Go 2603 – GA 1992). Except for Birsen Alan's recording, the song "Zehra" can be found in two more covers in Turkish-speaking historical discography, which were made in 1939 in Istanbul by Seyyan Hanim (Sahibinin Sesi 0TB 1406-1 – AX 2190 and JO 271) and Bayan Hikmet (Columbia 17590).
Some eighty years later, in 2017, Taner Öngür & 43.75 releaseed the album "Elektrik Gramophone" on vinyl (Tantana Records TNT 017), which includes "Zehra" in instrumental form.
Regarding the recordings of the song in modern discography, we should note the instrumental arrangement "Zechra" by the Greek group "The Aqua Barons". It is included on the CD "Southeast Sombers" recorded in 2016, in Corinth (Green Cookie Records - GC052). Also, in February of the same year, the Antoine Karacostas Trio, led by Antoine Karacostas (of Greek origin) on the piano, and Anders Ulrich (bass) and Simon Bierner (drums), recorded at the Aéroneff studio in Paris, with the participation of Cybèle Castoriadis, the song "Zehra" [CD "Trails, Parallel Records (12) PR005].
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. Discography as well as musical scores have 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”.
Research and text: George Evangelou, Leonardos Kounadis and Nikos Ordoulidis
Ever since antiquity, music transcription has been the intrinsic way of visual representation of sound, sometimes in detail and sometimes in the form of a guide. Throughout time, the visual capture of music has been the only way to store and preserve it over time, but also the exclusive means of reproducing it. In any case, visual transfer should be considered as an auxiliary tool, since oral dissemination and storage in the memory of artists have been the most timeless techniques for the diffusion of music through time and space. During Europe's so-called "classical" musical period, with its most powerful centers of production, such as today's Austria, Germany, France and Italy, and especially in its path towards Romanticism, music transcription, that is, the musical score, was considered by some composers as the very embodiment of their work.
Understandably, in the modern capitalist world, music transcription, as the primary tool for the substantialization of music, brought under its purview repertoires that were not connected, were not disseminated, and did not function on the basis of their transcription. This offered to the music product sales centers an additional tool to expand their action network: non-scholar musics acquired a convenient way of circulating them, enhancing their popularity, even in places very far from those of their original creation. At the end of the 19th century, however, the phenomenon of sound recording and reproduction rearranged relationships and disrupted the status quo of publishing houses, claiming a share of the market, offering a product that was extremely complete and immediate. The publishing houses tried to react with legal measures, but it became impossible to stop the dynamics of the new phenomenon: the prevalence of commercial discography was now a fact, for most of the 20th century.
As far as non-scholar music is concerned, commercial printed musical scores were publications of the musical texts of songs or instrumental pieces (for the publishing activity in Greece see Lerch-Kalavrytinos, 2003: 4-5). For the needs of musical scores, the songs were arranged mainly (but not only) for piano or for piano and voice, generally without complex performance requirements. Multi-instrumental or technically demanding orchestrations were systematically avoided. The lyrics were printed below the notes of the melodic development of the singing parts and, sometimes, their translations into other languages. For the most part, the musical scores were two or four pages long, and came with a themed front and back cover.
This four-page musical score contains the songs "Zechra" with music by Michalis Sougioul and lyrics by Aimilios Savvidis and "Kritikes mandinades" with music by Michalis Sougioul and lyrics by Nikos Gounaris. Immediately after the start of the Greek-Italian war in 1940, the song "Zechra" was arranged with new lyrics by Mimis Traiforos under the title "Paidia, tis Ellados paidia".
The black and white cover is dominated by the full-page photo of the singer Sofia Vempo. The authors of the song and the publisher are also mentioned. On the second page, it bears the collector's stamp "Syllogi Foti Sarri" (Fotis Sarris' collection), and "A. Varthalitis" is written on the third page. The musical score of the song "Kritikes mantinades" is on the black and white cover.
The musical text of the song "Zechra" (pages 2-3) is included in a musical score with a system of three staffs (two for piano and one for singing) in which the lyrics of both versions of the song are written. Half of the lyrics from "Paidia, tis Ellados paidia" are written, apparently due to lack of space. The musical text is accompanied by the characterizations "tango-romance oriental" and "polemiki parodia sto skopo tis Zechras" (warlike parody in Zechra's tune).
The song "Zechra" falls within the scope of exoticism, under the ethnocentric lens of which the Western world came into contact, among others, with othernesses such as the peoples of the East and its musical universe. The meaning of exoticism concerns, on the one hand, the characteristics of that which is outside the sphere of identity and, on the other hand, the attraction exerted by that which has such characteristics. The widespread acceptance of the phenomenon is obvious: the multidimensional linguistic, musical and visual wealth accumulated around and within exoticism created a common stock of knowledge that perpetually feeds the collective and individual imaginary. The locations represented in exoticism, that is, the East, Latin America, Spain, Hawaii, are par excellence imaginary, disconnected from the real world. They are revealed like a theatrical stage, with alternating scenes, where fantasies are dramatized, overwhelm the senses and release intense emotions, offering the "visitor" an ideal experience, outside the limitations of the conventional world (see the digital collection "Exoticism in Greek-speaking repertoires").
In Greek historical discography, the song was recorded for the first time in 1938, in Athens, by Sofia Vempo, accompanied by the Michalis Sougioul's orchestra ("Zechra", His Master's Voice OGA 844-1 – AO 2515 and reissue by RCA-Victor OGA 844-1 – 26-8027 and Orthophonic OGA 844-1 – S-471-A). In the same year, the song was also recorded by Koula Nikolaidou with Theodoros Papadopoulos’ orchestra (Parlophone Go 3197 – B. 21992-I).
The declaration of war by fascist Italy and its victorious confrontation by the Greek army in Albania mobilized the forces of Greek music. From October 1940 to April 1941, creators of all genres recorded the events in new songs or adapted lyrics with similar themes to older hits.
Playwright and lyricist Mimis Traiforos, later husband of Sofia Vempo, would adapt lyrics referring to the Greco-Italian war to the melody of "Zechra". In December 1940, Sofia Vempo, accompanied by Michalis Sougioul's orchestra, recorded in Athens the song "Paidia, tis Ellados paidia" (Columbia C.G. 2136 – D.G. 6575)). The recording was reissued in the US (Cοlumbia USA CO 32207 – 7221-F) but also in Turkey (Columbia Turkey C.G. 2136 – DT 181).
The appearance of the song in Turkish discography, however, is not limited to the above-mentioned reissue. Probably in 1939, Birsen Alan with the Park Otel Dans Orkestrasi recorded in Istanbul the song "Zehra" with Turkish lyrics (Odeon CO 3634 – LA 270322 and Odeon CO 3634 – P.L. 68). It should be mentioned that the other side of the record includes another cover of a Greek song, "Cemile", with Turkish lyrics by İhsan Sensoy (Odeon CO 3540 – LA 270322 and Odeon CO 3540 – P.L. 68). It is the song "Tzemile" with music by Theodoros Papadopoulos and lyrics by Tsamas [Minos Matsas], which was recorded in Athens in 1938 by Alkis Pagonis and the Papadopoulos Vocal Trio (Columbia Go 2603 – GA 1992). Except for Birsen Alan's recording, the song "Zehra" can be found in two more covers in Turkish-speaking historical discography, which were made in 1939 in Istanbul by Seyyan Hanim (Sahibinin Sesi 0TB 1406-1 – AX 2190 and JO 271) and Bayan Hikmet (Columbia 17590).
Some eighty years later, in 2017, Taner Öngür & 43.75 releaseed the album "Elektrik Gramophone" on vinyl (Tantana Records TNT 017), which includes "Zehra" in instrumental form.
Regarding the recordings of the song in modern discography, we should note the instrumental arrangement "Zechra" by the Greek group "The Aqua Barons". It is included on the CD "Southeast Sombers" recorded in 2016, in Corinth (Green Cookie Records - GC052). Also, in February of the same year, the Antoine Karacostas Trio, led by Antoine Karacostas (of Greek origin) on the piano, and Anders Ulrich (bass) and Simon Bierner (drums), recorded at the Aéroneff studio in Paris, with the participation of Cybèle Castoriadis, the song "Zehra" [CD "Trails, Parallel Records (12) PR005].
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. Discography as well as musical scores have 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”.
Research and text: George Evangelou, Leonardos Kounadis and Nikos Ordoulidis
© 2019 KOUNADIS ARCHIVE
