Wednesday 6 November 2019

HYMN TO THE MUSE CALLIOPE ~ MESOMEDES OF CRETE




Mesomedes of Crete (Ancient Greek: Μεσομήδης ὁ Κρής) was a Roman-era Greek lyric poet and composer of the early 2nd century CE.
The following video is a performance of his Hymn to the Muse Calliope ( Greek: Καλλιόπη).In Greek Religion, She is the Muse who presides over eloquence and epic poetry. Hesiod calls her the Leader of All the Muses ( for more information on the 9 Muses, see here).In this short and lovely hymn, Mesomedes calls upon Calliope to help him start his song; singers and poets have always called upon Calliope to help them perform in the best manners. The poet also calls upon Apollo, who is the Greek God of Music and He is the one who raised the 9 Muses. 

Below the video,there is a translation of the lyrics in English, as well as the original in Ancient Greek.

Singer: Daphne Panourgia
Orchestration: Petros Tabouris
Video-Creation: Heliodromion


Lyrics in English
Sing, dearest Muse, and 
help me start my song.
Let the breeze coming 
through your forests
make my soul vibrate!
Oh, wise Calliope, 
you the leader of 
the gracious Muses,
and You wise Initiator 
of the Mysteries,
Latona's son, Delian, 
Paean, offer your help, 
being favorable to me!

Ancient Greek
Άειδε Μούσά μοι φίλη, 
μολπής δ' εμής κατάρχου, 
αύρη δε σων απ' άλσεων 
εμάς φρένας δονείτω. 
Καλλιόπεια σοφά, 
Μουσών προκαθαγέτι τερπνών, 
και σοφέ Μυστοδότα, 
Λατούς γόνε, Δήλιε, Παιάν, 
ευμενείς πάρεστέ μοι.



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