Stella Papalamprou is a Greek singer, composer and lyricist focused on traditional pieces and instruments from her homeland, Grevena, where Epirote traditions, Macedonian elements, Vlach/Aromanian influences and the pastoral repertoires of the Pindus mountains converge. At the same time, her music also incorporates instruments and sonic elements connected to Pontic culture, reflecting the historical presence of Pontic communities in Greek Macedonia.
|
🔗 Read more about language and melody in the Pontic musical tradition, here 🔗 Read Stella’s interview “Songs in Motion: Stella Papalamprou on Identity, Displacement and Endangered Languages” for the newsletter of the European Folk Network, here |
The concert
On the Stage, Stella, Giorgos and the percussionist Christina Kalaitzidou bring to the stage the living musical heritage of their region. They are open to conversations regarding performances, dates and collaboration conditions.
The album Protanixin
Stella’s discographical debut, will be released on 24th of September of 2026 and it will be premiered in the radio show Globofonie by Ciro de Rosa.
Find below Protanixin and Trygona, sung by Stella in the Pontic dialect of Greek, accompanied by the tulum (Pontic bagpipe) of Giorgos Vergos — who also plays Pontic lyra, saz, traditional flute and bulgari — with the davul of Nikos Fillipides.
Click to watch the video
Protanixin (Early Springtime, Πρωτάνοιξην) is a traditional love song from Pontus, sung in the Pontic Greek dialect. Rooted in the ancient oral tradition of the Pontic Greeks, this song carries the characteristic melodic language of the region — raw, intimate, and timeless.
| Lyrics in the Pontic Greek dialect
Πρωτάνοιξην καιρός έτον, πουλί μ’, έρθα σ’ εσά -ι Και ντ’ έμορφα ’χι͜ονόβρεχ̌εν ο Θεόν οξ̌ωκά -ι; Η καρδία μ’ ζαΐφκον έν’, τ’ εσόν η εγάπ’ νικά ’το Φαρμάκωσoν με από μακρά, κανείς πα μ’ εγροικά ’το Αούτο τ’ εσόν η εγάπ’ άψιμον έτον βρούλαν Εσάρεψεν το καρδόπο μ’, ετυλίεν ση γούλα μ’ Μίαν κάπως να σ̌ασ̌ιρεύ’ς και γελαστά τερείς με Όλια του κόσμου τα καλά το πλαεύ’ς και χαρί͜εις με |
Lyrics in English
It was early springtime, my bird (my love), when I came to you; and how beautiful it was, the way God sent snowy rain outside. My heart is weak, and your love conquers it; poison me from afar, so no one else will realize. This love of yours is like fire in the reeds; it surrounded my little heart and wrapped itself around my neck. The moment you falter, lost in a daze and look at me with a smile so bright, you gather all the world’s hidden grace and gift it to me, a harvest of light. |
Click to watch the video
Trygona is one of the most multifaceted female figures in Pontic tradition. Her name evokes both the turtledove — a symbol of the beloved in Pontic song — and a common women’s name among the Greek communities of the Black Sea. In the song she appears as a woman who takes on the agricultural work alone: tending animals, cutting wood in the forest, knitting — an embodiment of the strength and endurance of the Pontian woman. This recording weaves together two variants: in one, Trygona is the hardworking woman of the land; in the other, she wears earrings and rings, and her sweet gaze makes the evening feel like a thousand years. Two faces of the same woman.
About language and melody in the Pontic tradition
A journalist from the Netherlands asked Stella about the impact of Pontic Greek on the music. I found Stella’s answer so interesting and detailed that I thought it deserved to be shared in full. Here it is, with her permission:
~~~~~~
The relationship between language and music is indeed one of the most fascinating—and often overlooked—aspects of the Pontic heritage.
In the Pontic tradition, language and melody are inseparable; Pontic Greek is not simply the vehicle for the lyrics, but a fundamental element that structurally shapes the music itself. Here are the key points of this interaction:
🔹Archaic Phonology and Vocal Placement
Originating from the ancient Ionic-Attic branch of the ancient and Hellenistic roots of the Greek language, the Pontic dialect retains unique phonetic characteristics. These closed vowel sounds and distinct consonant clusters dictate a specific frontal and nasal vocal placement. As a singer, you cannot use a relaxed, open-throat technique; the phonology of the dialect forces a high-intensity, slightly compressed tone that produces the signature, piercing, almost “crying” resonance of Pontic song.
🔹Prosody and Melodic Inflection
The natural rise and fall of the spoken dialect—its prosody—directly guides the melodic contour. The dialect is highly rhythmic and percussive, with natural contractions and word stresses that align perfectly with the fast, asymmetric tempos of Pontic music (such as the *Tik* or *Trigona*). The language itself acts as a rhythmic engine, syncopating organically with the bowing of the Pontic lyra (kemenche).
🔹 Micro-Regional Variations
There is no single, uniform Pontic expression. Different regions of historical Pontus developed their own local idioms (e.g., the coastal Trapezountiac vs. the inland Chaldiot/Ophitic). Each subgroup brings its own distinctive pronunciation, vocal placement, and expressive nuances. For a vocalist, understanding the geographical origin of a song is vital to reproducing its true character.
Coming from my own roots in the musical traditions of Grevena and Epirus, I have always been deeply aware of how every traditional vocal idiom possesses its own internal logic. Even when different regional traditions share similar modal scales, they do not breathe in the same way. Their phrasing, ornamentation, and vocal aesthetics are fundamentally distinct.
For me, the ultimate artistic challenge—and joy—is learning to move fluidly between these diverse musical languages, respecting the unique anatomy of each one without letting them bleed into one another.
In order to help the readers connect with this, we can easily include a brief note in our materials: “The repertoire is performed in the Pontic Greek dialect—a conservative linguistic variety preserving ancient Ionic elements. Its unique phonological rules, nasalized vowels, and sharp syncopations directly shape the percussive vocal delivery, phrasing, and microtonal ornamentation of the songs.”
Stella Papalamprou