Written by Sotiris Bekas
Dilgkiroudi (or Dilgeroudi) is a word encountered in Eastern Thrace, and depending on local interpretation, it can mean “the builder,” “the marble craftsman,” or even “the roofer,” referring to someone who repairs or builds a roof. In any case, it is a characteristic related to manual and repair work. In the homonymous Thracian song, the girl urges the boy she loves, Dilgkiroudi, to tell his mother about their love and ask for her hand in marriage. Their mothers disagree, but the young couple decides they will succeed and take matters into their own hands. This song from Kavaklı, the town of Eastern Romylia, today’s Topolovgrad in Bulgaria, is the first they sang together as a group, by Salonikia Tsantsani (lyra, vocals), Ioanna Kallergi, Natasa Tsakiridou, Lydia Fourtouna, and Anastasia Chatziapostolidou (vocals), and they decided to officially start the vocal ensemble “Dilgkiroudi,” created in 2017. The framework and occasion were an event dedicated to the music of Thrace organized by the Department of Music Science and Art of the University of Macedonia, where they all were students, focusing on Traditional Music.
Coincidentally, Chronis Aidonidis was also present at this concert, and coincidentally, Salonikia Tsantsani plays Thracian lyra, while three members of the group come from Thrace. However, these coincidences turned into a conscious choice when during rehearsals they realized that the music of this region provided them with the musical material they wanted to communicate and express. Thracian music also has an additional element that greatly interests the members of Dilgkiroudi, and that is the prominent female role in musical interpretation, while the myths of this particular tradition, the stories of Thracian folk songs, focus on women.
“We are interested in finding people who today may have remained in an unknown corner of the country, singing songs that usually no one will hear at a feast. We are fortunate to know the women of Volaka in Drama, from whom we draw great inspiration and material, as well as from the women from Asvestades, in Thrace. We seek inspiration in these women who either once sang, or fortunately still sing, this material that somehow came into their hands and they, due to their musical experience, have found their way to present it. Alas, if we were trying to make a sterile reproduction of all this authenticity that these people have. Our way is to process this material and present it through our urban experiences, as well as our urban skills,” explains Natasa Tsakiridou to folkradio.gr.
Indeed, Dilgkiroudi works and presents a repertoire – mainly – from Thrace and Macedonia, with an approach that is very close to the local idiom, but the modern perspective of the members is not hidden. Something that reveals their artistic sincerity. On a second level, however, Salonikia Tsantsani, Ioanna Kallergi, Natasa Tsakiridou, Lydia Fourtouna, and Anastasia Chatziapostolidou use folkloric material to enrich their performances with expressive elements that strengthen their expressiveness, seeking interaction with the audience.
These are the characteristics of one of the most interesting new ensembles in the Greek music scene of folk music, which incidentally have started preparing their first complete album. With songs from Thrace and Macedonia, but also new compositions, based on this musical framework.
Listen more from Dilgkiroudi here
https://www.youtube.com/@-dilgeroudi5459
https://www.instagram.com/dilgeroudi_/
