Recorded concert, presented on May 11, 2024, at the Thessaloniki Concert Hall.

Ode to the lands of Pontus and Armenia.

An exceptional performance – a concert for historical memory, featuring the spoken word, the sounds of music, the voices of singers, and the steps of dancers, narrating the truth about the blood-stained lands of Pontus and Armenia.

Actress Melina Botelli, with her voice, touches the Holy Land and brings forth centuries-old conversations, remnants of oaths, old forgotten pains, unburied, as if speaking with their dead bodies.

Performers Haig Yazdjian, Sofia Papazoglou, Babis Iordanidis, and Despina Filippou (accompanied by a multitude of acclaimed musicians) take us on a journey with their songs to the unforgettable corner of the East, where every stone was kneaded with the heart of the people.

Two hundred dancers dance the steps of Pontus, in a gathering of comrades.

The highlight is the Dance of the Knives and the Sera Dance. Light and darkness alternate on their faces. The mind ignites and the place groans and trembles from their bravery and daring.

Twenty drums give the sound command on stage, and with their rhythm, our hearts beat as we gaze toward the East.

The fifteen-member children's musical ensemble with lyres and percussion, with music and colors of memory, gives us a message of optimism and hope for final justice and the restoration of truth.

Narration: Melina Botelli
Singing:
Haig Yazdjian
Sofia Papazoglou
Babis Iordanidis
Despina Filippou
Arsenis Orfanidis

Musicians:
Haig Yazdjian - oud
Giorgos Kontogiannis - lyra, Tasos Poulios - kanun, Thanos Chatzianagnostou - drums, Yiannis Papadopoulos - keyboards, Vahan Galstyan - Armenian wind instruments, Dimitris Orfanidis - Pontic lyra, Vasilis Kasouras - laouto, Giorgos Psomiadis - daouli, Giorgos Moisiadis - Pontic lyra, Kostas Foulidis - Pontic lyra, vocals, Kostas Zois and 20 percussionists on stage from the drum learning school
Musical Ensemble of the Pontian House of Amyntaiou
Orchestra manager & Pontic lyra: Eleni Sisiou

Organization: Thessaloniki Concert Hall in collaboration with the Panhellenic Federation of Pontian Associations & the Armenian National Committee of Greece