Music of Smyrne : A recording Project 

Who am I?

My name is Con Kalamaras and I’m a Melbourne based musician. I was born in Melbourne, to Greek parents,  and for years I've been performing Greek Music - mainly traditional Rebetika, which I have an instiable passion for,  with various ensembles. I've produced many successful events in Melbourne (including, but not limited to the Rebetiko Festival at Melbourne Recital Centre) showcasing various Rebetiko composers and local esteemed performers.  

Outside of performing and producing events , I also present a weekly world music radio program which delves into archival recordings from Greece, Turkey , Armenia to name a few, this show is called Off the Map - 3MBS almost all of this music is from 78 Records - complete with scratches ! This show focuses on the historical recordings that were released between 1915 to 1947, and each week i focus on a specific region or composer. This also includes recordings from Constantinople, New York and Greece.

Through being involved with these projects I have gained a greater appreciation of  the depth and breadth of Greek music and the history attached to it, where it came from to where it is today. I have captured many of these Melbourne performances on my official Youtube channel and also on my official website which also gives examples of my work as a music practitioner as well as event director and curator. I've released two albums focusing on Rebetika and these have gone on to sell extremely well in Australia, Europe and in the US. The first album was released in 2015 ( Rebetiko ) and the second in 2016. It's been a hell of a ride, and I've loved every bit of it, the first album was recorded at various locations in a grass roots style, with lots of amazing musicians contributing. 

The aim with this project is to once again engage with many talented musicians to help deliver this amazing and unique music, to celebrate its heritage, and to document and celebrate its cultural and historical significance. Here's an example of one of my friends Paddy Montgomery who will once again be contributing to this project - here's one track we recorded on the first album, a track called Limneiko. 

I collect vintage recordings from all parts of the world in particular Greek recordings that originated from Asia Minor , I'm facinated by the history associated with  this music, and I am not alone in this!

Why this project?

For years I’ve dreamt of recording and releasing an album of Greek songs that originated from Asia Minor and most importantly Smyrne, which is Modern day Izmir. The aim of this project is to assemble a group of musicians to work collaboratively to bring a suite of these amazing songs, and the rich history they represent,  to life once again. This project will bring together various well respected musicians based in Melbourne to re-record and reinvisage music from this era . There are many amazing artists to focus on for this project, most notably Rita Abadzi , Panagiotis Toundas , Roza Eskenazi and Kostas Skarvelis to name a few. 

This Pozible campaign will enable me to record  songs that are thematically centred around Smyrne and Asia Minor. I feel these collection of songs would be an amazing vehicle to convey the cultural diversity that once existed in Asia Minor that lasted for generations. The songs will be recorded in Melbourne with the aim to engage in some of Melbourne’s finest musicians and give it a contemporary flavour.

These funds will enable me to co-ordinate and project manage the recording process, pay the musicians,  and also create a comprehensive and engaging marketing campaign,  to take this finished product to the music community both in Australia and overseas. The importance and hisorical significance of this music is still relevent to this day, and as such, the songs still resonate and have an audience far beyond Australia.

Music Background information

There are many forms of Greek Music, by the beginning of the 20th century, music-cafés(καφέ-σαντάν) were popular in Greek cities like Constantinople and Smyrne, where small groups of musicians from Greece played. The bands were typically led by a female vocalist and included a violin, Kanun, Oud to name a few.  The improvised songs typically exclaimed amán amán, which led to the name amanédhes or café-aman (καφέ-αμάν). Greek musicians of this period included Marika Papagika, Rosa Eskenazi and Rita Abatzi. This period also brought in the Rebetiko movement, which had local Smyrnaic and Byzantine influences.In 1923, after the population exchange between Greece and Turkey, many ethnic Greeks from Asia Minor fled to Greece as a result of the Greco-Turkish War. They settled in poor neighbourhoods in Piraeus, Thessaloniki, and Athens. Many of these immigrants were highly educated, such as songwriter Vangelis Papazoglou, and Panagiotis Toundas, composer and leader of Odeon Records' Greek subsidiary, who are traditionally considered as the founders of the Smyrna School of Rebetiko. 

Budget Overview

Recording & Production ( including musicians ) $2000

Album pressing & printing - $1500

Digital promotion - $500

I will use my experience as an event producer and promoter to execute an effecive digital campaign for this project, as I believe (and evidence suggests) that this is the most effective way to reach our potential audience. 

I will be producing the recording myself, but will not be paying myself a wage (all for the love of it).

The funds from your support will be going towards paying the musicians (including, where relevant, their travel expenses), out of pocket promotion expences (such as Facebook ads), and physical pressing of the album and artwork . I will not be paying myself a publicist wage, but will do this work myself. I will be emplying a designer to recreate the feel of the original recordings for the album artwork. 

Every project has its challenges, but I am confident that I will be able to wrangle any potential challenges to this project with gusto. 

Some of the challenges that I need to be mindful of with this project are: Juggling family commitments, full time work and also co-ordinating the musicians will certainly be a challenge. Additionally, I  play gigs on almost a weekly basis and having a weekly radio show might also be a challenge (in regards to time), however I'm confident that I will be able to deliver the outcomes in this project, as the timeline in fininte. 

My workplace is flexible and supportive of life/home balance and committment to music projects, so I have no doubt I can incorporate my daily work life with the successful promotion and project management of this album, whilst not comprimising my family life. 

I have an incredibly supportive wife, whom is also creative, and we will be able to effectively schedule recording sessions around childcare, thus I don't see this as problematic, so much as a fun calendar puzzle. 

I live and breathe this music, I have bulit up a successful and respected career in producing events and releases in this genre (not without challenges), and any foreseeable future challenges associated with this project are not daunting, they go part and parcel with doing something I love and am genuinely passionate about. Forwarned is forarmed, and so, acknowledging these challenges makes them far less likely to occur with any great impact on the outcome of this project.