Alekos Vretos - Press

Ethnos - 12/12/2004 (English Translation)

CD REVIEW GREEK.......CARAVAN IN THE MIDDLE-EAST A MUSICAL BRIDGE BETWEEN EAST AND WEST IS FORMED BY THIS INTERESTING CD RELEASE. EXACTLY LIKE GREECE IS THE CROSS ROAD BETWEEN EAST AND WEST, THE SAME APPLIES TO THE PIECES OFTHIS ALBUM AS THEY ARE DISTINGUISHED BY THE HARMONIC CO-EXISTENSE OF ELEMENTS FROM THE EASTERN AND WESTERN “PALETTE”. THE TITLE IS DESCRIBING THE MUSICAL CONTENT. “YUNAN” MEANS GREECE IN ARABIC. AND THE SUBTITLE IS MORE SELF EXPANATORY “A GREEK MUSIC CARAVAN IN THE MIDDLE EAST”. THIS GREEK CARAVAN IS THE “MELITI ENSEMBLE” , A GROUP OF GREEK MUSICIANS WITH CLASSICAL WESTERN TRAINING AND INFLUENCED BY GREEK TRADITION. THEY TRY TO EXPLORE A DIFFERENT MELODIC WORLD, THE ARABIC ONE, THUS CREATING A UNIQUE DIALOGUE BETWEEN SOUNDS AND RYTHMS. THROUGH THIS DIALOGUE ALL THE SIMILAR EFFECTS THAT HAVE BEEN CREATED TROUGH THOUSANDS OF YEARS BETWEEN THE TWO CULTURES ARE REVEALED. THE ARRANGEMENTS AND COMPOSITIONS BY ALEKOS K. VRETOS, PAPADOPOULOS, N. SARAGOUDAS PRESENT QUITE AN INTEREST. TRADITIONAL INSTRUMENTS LIKE THE OUD, QANUN ETC. CREATE CHARMING RESULT THAT TRAVELS THE LISTENER. IN THE ERA THAT WORLD MUSIC INFLUENCES ARE SIMPLY COPIED WITH NO MEANING THIS RECORDING WORK COMES TO UNDERLINE THAT TWO DIFFERENT MUSICAL CULTURES CAN CO-EXIST WITH OUT EACH ONE LOOSING ITS ORIGINAL CHARACTER.