Middle Eastern "pontiaka"

[eva.b...@gmail.com]

Hi everyone,

This is a bit off-topic, but anyway....While surfing on youtube, I
found a clip with an Israeli song that I really enjoy, "Nitzotz
Ha'ahava" ("Spark of love"):

http://www.hebrewsongs.com/song-nitzozha'ahava.htm

Here is a 'live' version with "ethnic rock" singer Ehud Banai (from a
Persian Jewish family) performing the song with Arab Israeli artists,
half in Hebrew and half in Arabic:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0X3x4NIOuPk

This popular tune is actually a cover of the following Kazantzidis/
Chrysanthos song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCVJqqQs77E

I thought it was neat to see how this Pontic song has travelled all
the way to the Middle East, and ended up in a Hebrew-Arabic version!

Apologies if I have already posted this!

Best, Eva

[hennadervish]

How interesting -- I also listened carefully to the Kazantizidis
version and was struck by the "quaver" in the vocals -- which, after
listening to a lot of Persian music lately, sounds reminiscent of that
Iranian vocal style. I haven't heard that much in laika or demotika
before. so maybe ehud's and stelio's versions came from a similar
root! thanks for posting the youtube clips everybody - I miss Greece
so much and its fun to see Greek tv music programs!

On Jul 2, 4:08 pm, "eva.bro...@gmail.com" <eva.bro...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[eva.b...@gmail.com]

Hi hennadervish,

Actually, Ehud Banai is more of a rock singer, in the Vassilis
Papakonstantinou style, if you know him. The Middle Eastern/Persian
influences are only discernible in some of his songs. There are many
other Israeli singers, however, who have the characteristic Middle
Eastern "quaver" (in Hebrew they call it "silsul"). Kazantzidis'
characteristic laika style has been an inspiration for many Israeli
artists, and there are many Hebrew-language covers of his songs. The
most famous is "Elinor", a cover of "Iparcho", which reputedly has
sold more than a half a million copies in Israel. It was first
recorded by legendary singer Zohar Argov, here in a performance at a
Bar Mitzvah ("coming of age") celebration:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=67WLLZewyd0

A version by Israeli Palestinian Helal Nasser:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQTJA0ls0X8

The young Israeli singers performing a medley with another Kazantzidis
tune, "Vima, vima":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_Nfx2PjBtM

The best singers in the Middle Eastern tradition are often also
cantors (psaltes), like Emil Zrihan, from Morocco:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sUT_ZDWuCRc

I tried to find a youtube video with Israeli artists singing in
Persian (there are a few), but I couldn't find any. Here is a nice
clip with two of Israel's IMHO finest vocalists singing in Turkish:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcHSDjUJYOo

Sorry about the O.T.!

Best, Eva

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[Nikos A. Politis]

The quavery voice of Kazantzidis and the other Pontian in the video is
characteristic of Pontos only, in no other part of the greek speaking
world does this technique exist. In his commercial life Kazantzidis
never applied this technique.

The ornamental melismatics common in practically all traditional
singing techniques in Greek demotiko / traditional song is different.
It is not a vibrato but a quick up / down in the scale. Unfortunately
I have not much experience with Persian music to be able to say if
there are resemblances to the pontian style.

On Jul 4, 11:13 pm, "eva.bro...@gmail.com" <eva.bro...@gmail.com>

[eva.b...@gmail.com]

Hi Nikos,

The ornamental melismatics common in practically all traditional
> singing techniques in Greek demotiko / traditional song is different.
> It is not a vibrato but a quick up / down in the scale. Unfortunately
> I have not much experience with Persian music to be able to say if
> there are resemblances to the pontian style.

This is what I meant by "silsul", which in an Israeli context roughly
denotes a kind of vocal ornamention typical of singers with a Middle
Eastern background. You're right that Kazantzidis' usual "laika"
singing style is different from his performances of "pontiaka". Here
are some samples of Persian popular music, by a singer who also
happens to live in Israel (Hezi Fanian):

http://www.radio-iran.com/index.php?jz_path=Persian%2FHezi-Fanian

The same artist singing in Hebrew, in a typical "syrupy" ballad!;-)

http://www.flix.co.il/tapuz/showVideo.asp?m=2197434

Best, Eva

On 5 Juli, 13:56, "Nikos A. Politis" <nika...@otenet.gr> wrote:
> The quavery voice of Kazantzidis and the other Pontian in the video is
> characteristic of Pontos only, in no other part of the greek speaking
> world does this technique exist.  In his commercial life Kazantzidis
> never applied this technique.
>
>
>

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[Nikos A. Politis]

Eva I don't know if I chose wrongly but it all seems skylladika to
me. I 'm afraid one cannot tell anything about a traditional music he
is not familiar with, by listening to contemporary commercial stuff.
Never mind, I have listened to traditional persian music from old
vynil records, it is different from the fasil type turkish music but
still well within the general concept.

On Jul 5, 7:06 pm, "eva.bro...@gmail.com" <eva.bro...@gmail.com>

[eva.b...@gmail.com]

Hi Nikos,

Here are a few youtube samples of traditional Iranian music:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSPlXAm7j-8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=raGbz1ythKk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmBB8qbLX6o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBBhYwOBqf0

The last one is not traditional, but a 70's song by a hugely popular
singer, Dariush. My homesick Iranian refugee friends used to play it
all the time when I got to know them in the 80's:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jR1TLMvMcjY

Best, Eva

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[Nikos A. Politis]

Yes Eva, the three first videos are exactly on the lines I know of
persian music. I didn't notice anything similar to the pontic vibrato
we have been talking about.

On Jul 12, 6:34 pm, "eva.bro...@gmail.com" <eva.bro...@gmail.com>