Written by Sotiris Bekas
Within the 15-minute duration of the special portrait published by folkradio.gr, Savvas Siatras, one of the most historical singers of Epirus music, talks about his life and career, but above all about the music of the “land of pentatonia”.
His origin is from Karitsa, a village located between Veltsista (Klimatia) and Zitsa (two villages with a great tradition of folk, instrumentalists), just outside Ioannina, where, besides being his birthplace, he also became one with the local customs and traditions, which decisively shaped his personality. His parents, Konstantinos and Panayiota Siatra, took care of this – after all – passing on to their child all those nuances that were necessary for him to always carry with him as a talisman.
His mother was – at the same time – the one who taught him some of the most beautiful Epirotic songs, and her sound remained forever indelible in Savvas Siatras, as a compass and balance in all his artistic choices. As a natural continuation of things, his talent bestowed upon him a career full of experiences, which led him to the ends of the earth.
A graduate of the famous “Rizareios Ecclesiastical School“, Savvas Siatras learned Byzantine music and its psalms well, and this influenced him deeply. “I have the best memories from Rizareios Ecclesiastical School,” he says, recalling an incident, “It must have been in 1963, during the exam period, summer… All the students were eager to finish the exams to return to our villages. So, I also gave my glue and started singing. We had the windows open… ‘What can I do for you, my Haido, what can I do for you, my son…!’ I started to sing. The voice was booming! The teacher, Nikolaos Karitsiotis from Ampelochori, Laconia, hears it and says: ‘Shhh!!! Radio, radio!’. The kids couldn’t hold back their laughter and corrected him: ‘No, it’s not a radio, they said; Savvas is singing!'”
Savvas Siatras began his remarkable artistic journey in the late 1960s alongside the famous Chalkias brothers, who had as their frontman the greatest figure of Epirotic music, the great clarinetist, Tassos Chalkias. During this – first – creative period, Kyriakos Chalkias, brother of Tassos Chalkias, gave Savvas Siatras a photo with dedication, which implies a lot about the value and respect that the greatest of his colleagues attributed to him… “To our successor and brotherly friend Savvas Siatras. As a eternal reminder, with love, Kyriakos Chalkias.”
However, the fame and recognition of Savvas Siatras traveled beyond Greece. “I would like to express my respect for the singer, Savvas Siatras, one of the best representatives of the ancient tradition of rhythmic improvisation in Greece. He is a great artist who knows how to preserve a wonderful musical tradition, without altering anything from its style, preferring the purity of his homeland’s music to easy profits and instant success,” were the characteristic words of Alain Daniélou, Director of the International Institute of Comparative Music Berlin – Venice, in 1973!
Particularly honorary for Savvas Siatras was his invitation to the International Traditional Music Festival of Ren (France, May 1974), while his voice has been recorded in countless radio broadcasts, such as on French radio and Deutsche Welle. A special accolade is his -long-standing- collaboration with the “teacher of traditional music”, Simon Karas, while in 1972 he participated with two songs in the Edition of Folk Songs of the Academy of Athens for the 150 years of Independence of the Greek State.
Savvas Siatras is perennially characterized as one of the most important Epirotic singers, as one of the “Evangelists” of Epirotic song. During his multi-year career, which counts 50 (and more) years, he has collaborated with renowned clarinetists, such as Tassos Chalkias, Vasilis Dimou, Mitsos and Giannis Karagiannis, Petroloukas Chalkias, Vangelis Markopoulos, Petrakis Charalambous, Giorgos Vrakas, Napoleon Damos, Giorgos Damos, Stavros Kapsalis, Napoleon Zoumbas, Vasilis Batzis, Nikos Philippidis, Giorgos Kotsinis, etc., while he has sung in the most famous entertainment venues of traditional music, such as at Agioi Anargyroi of the Chalkias Brothers, “Tzavelena”, “Greek Village”, “Kotzak”, “Ipiros My Love”, “Aidonia”, “Athina 82”, “Epirotiko Salon”.
