Domna Samiou on nature, love
Traditional Greek folk songs with themes on nature and love comprise the program of an October 11 concert with a doyenne of Greek folk music, Domna Samiou, an Asia Minor Greek who has been performing, studying and collecting Greek folk music for the past 50 years. As a young girl, Samiou took an interest in collecting traditional songs and she has made recordings of over 4,000. The songs that will be performed at the October 11 event have been culled from this collection, and some of them are being presented to the public for the very first time. At a press conference earlier this week presenting the program of the concert, Samiou also announced that she has recorded four albums of her songs, due to go into circulation in the near future. «As I get older, I feel my senses growing weaker; my hearing, my vision. I just hope that my voice does not leave me as well,» said the artist, who turns 77 on the day of the concert. The performance is structured around the four seasons and is separated into two parts: The first presents songs traditionally performed at fall and winter festivals and rituals, and the second focuses on those for spring and summer. The performance also includes dances and performances of rites that are directly linked to the themes of the songs. Samiou will be joined on stage by a group of singers, as well as choirs and traditional dance troupes from various parts of Greece. Tickets are available from the Hellenic Festival box office (39 Panepistimiou, tel 210.928.2900) and the theater box office. It is worth noting that the cost of tickets is lower than usual, due to Samiou’s insistence.
