Evlogía
Studio Recording
“The nature and character of the world cannot be described properly without reference to something more. That something more has a nature that gives shape to the stories labeled as myths.... Indeed, even stories that would otherwise be labeled “true” and “real” (in the literal sense) have significance precisely in their mythic character.... What modernity labels as ‘fact’ is insufficient for human existence.”
Father Stephen Freeman
“Stories are able to help us to become more whole, to become Named. And Naming is one of the impulses behind all art; to give a name to the cosmos we see despite all the chaos.”
Madeleine L'Engle
“What if, in the bent and twisted darkness of our broken world, beauty is God’s theodicy? What if God can speak in creation and song, story and vision the things words, in their frailty, cannot yet bear? What if God’s hand reaches out to us clothed in beauty, and by grasping and trusting it, we may learn to walk through the darkness in hope?”
Sarah Clarkson
To some, the spirit world is mythical nonsense, to others, an invisible possibility, and to still others, a palpable presence. Some claim to visit ancient shadows through the intervention of eccentric personalities, others struggle with spirits that haunt and disturb their lives, and many with no experience of spirits imagine them through yearning, prayer or liturgy. Living in the material world, we search for blessings that transform us, from poor, hungry, weeping and reviled to rich, satisfied, laughing and loved, hoping that these Evlogía (blessings) will manifest God’s presence. In Orthodox Christianity, one aspires ultimately to union with God (Théosis), a union in which, paradoxically, individual identities are maintained and strengthened; individuals become their true selves, and their names are written in the Book of Life. We all seek freedom (Elefthería) from the darkness of this world, and to discover the meaning of the two deepest forms of love – Agápi, a passionate commitment to the well-being of another, and Storgí, a love that is unconditional, divine, perfect. Possessing these makes it possible for us to bless others.
This album is about all those things. It begins with the universal aspiration for transcendence, seeking union with all creation (“una integridad generosa” in Pablo Neruda’s poem, Demasiados nombres). In the Greek pagan spirit world, encounters with immortals can be risky, but adventurers with a guide to direct them might be drawn (as I am) to converse with the playful and benign water sprites, explored in Conversating Sprites. Interactions with such spirits are fleeting, but the ephemeral quality makes them all the more precious.
In the pagan world, identity and even memory were believed to be lost after death, as one merges into a nameless whole (similar in some respects to the vision in Demasiados nombres), after one travels the dark waters of the five rivers of Hades (Styx, Lethe, Acheron, Phlegthon, and Cocytus), the waters which inspire Styx and Stones. At that journey’s end, what have we become? Catatonics? Or perhaps, vapid clowns? Perhaps some spirits have their own reasons to visit us. Sotiría imagines the late rebetiko singer, Sotiria Bellou (a victim of spousal abuse) as an angel of death, avenging a woman murdered by her husband.
Mystics claim to traverse the space between the living and the dead. Some offer to do so for a price, as does one eccentric homeless resident of Nafplion, Greece in To Mayicó tou Bourtzi (The Magic of Bourtzi).
King of Heart is about the unique relationship between God and Man introduced by Judaism. This piece draws from various psalms to consider King David’s conception of a personal relationship between God and Man, one based on emotional devotion, and a yearning for forgiveness, which can only be conveyed by the songs he creates.
The last eight pieces present Christian perspectives, beginning with Blessed, in which Jesus offers, in his Sermon on the Plain, rewards in heaven for the virtuous who suffer in this world. The first of four poems by Michael Haldas is an epic description of the lifelong journey to find the right path (Climbing Ladders).
Two aspects of Christian love are explored in Agápi and Storgí. Haldas’s second poem is about suicide’s effect on those left behind (Blood, Blood), which is followed by two more, which consider the challenge of helping others to find God (Deliverance), and the internal struggle with the darkness within us (The Dark Light of the Soul). The end of life’s journey is the subject of the final piece, inspired by the hope of freedom (Elefthería) from the struggles of this world.
Three of the instrumental pieces (To Mayicó tou Bourtzi, Blessed, and Agápi) have lyrics, but here I decided to omit them and let only the instruments speak. I thank all the performers and engineers whose art and encouragement made this album possible, and especially my friend, the great oud player, Ara Dinkjian, who generously contributed his original Taksim to the beginning of To Mayicó tou Bourtzi.
Charles Calomiris
Pano Hora, Colorado
Get a sneak peek listening of the Evlogía album:
Demasiados nombres (Poem by Pablo Neruda)
Storgi (Instrumental)
To Mayicó tou Bourtzi (Instrumental, Spoken Lyrics Excerpt by Charles Calomiris, Angelo Labousis, and Marcus Tompros)
