Polis Efraimidis - Pontic lyra & vocals,

Nikos Nerantzakis - lute

Robbe Kieckens - percussion

The Pontic community in northern Greece is originally from Pontos, the 
Black Sea region in Turkey. Expelled, they spread and moved to Greece. 
Their music is nostalgically remembering their old land and sung in the 
Greek dialect they were speaking there. It is fiery dance
music, carrying the energy of celebration and grief simultaneously.
Learnt through long nights, sharing drinks, food and trance. It directly 
that connects to heart and body. Pontians Polis Efraimidis and Nikos 
Narantzakis play together, sharing food, drinks and trance during long 
nights, celebrating their kinship and friendship. Their band "Banda 
Tsimera" fires up thousands of dancers during the Pontian panigiria 
(dance gatherings) every summer.
When Wouter Vandenabeele travelled through Europe in search of
melancholy, he met Polis in Thessaloniki. No lack of melancholy with
Polis, especially since he has Armenian roots as well. Playing in
Wouters Hiraeth project, Polis came to Belgium and met Robbe, playing 
together, sharing music, food, drinks... what needed to happen 
happened. So they play for you, these four friends, music with 
melancholy and fire, music from Greece, Turkey, Armenia, and who knows, 
maybe some other beautiful places.

https://youtu.be/z3bwa6Bk8GA?si=7x-AADt3hNbesByD
https://youtu.be/1sTwNWxpSdg?si=SvUEDXLGstKjVK4i
https://youtu.be/QA_XKfTQiIk?si=IefiYf3qVUMFX_tE

Samples and videos

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