The Pontic Lyre or Kementzes is the principal folk musical instrument of the Greeks of Pontus and of the refugees from that region. It belongs to the category of bowed string instruments, that is, instruments played with a bow.
It has three strings, usually tuned in perfect fourths with the notes B–E–A. It appears to have been invented during the Byzantine period, between the 11th and 12th centuries. It is made from various types of wood and has a wide repertoire, mainly Pontic music.
Origin
The first string instruments were mostly plucked (for example, the ancient Greek lyra), meaning they were played with the fingers or nails. Two-stringed bowed instruments, played in an upright position and strung with horsehair, may have originated among the nomadic, horse-riding cultures of Central Asia, in forms similar to the modern Mongolian morin khuur and the Kazakh kobyz.
Similar instruments and their variations probably spread along the trade routes between East and West, from Asia to the Middle East and the Byzantine Empire. The direct ancestor of all European bowed instruments (and possibly of the Pontic lyra as well) is the Arabic rebab, which evolved into the Byzantine lyra in the 9th century, and later into the European rebec.
The Pontic lyra seems to have been created between the 11th and 12th centuries, when Pontus was part of the Byzantine Empire, while the term kementzes first appeared in the 10th century.
Description of Parts
The Pontic lyra consists of the body (skafid), the neck (goula), the pegbox (kifal), the tuning pegs (otia), the soundboard (kapak), the fingerboard (sparel), three single strings, the tailpiece (palikar), the bridge (gaidaron), and the sound post (psychi), as well as the bow.
The pegbox, shaped like a teardrop, is called kifal (“head”) in the Pontic dialect. It is the upper part of the instrument. The tuning pegs, called otia (“ears”), are usually T-shaped, and the strings are wound around them. The strings run the full length of the instrument and are fastened at the tailpiece (palikar), a wooden, elongated inverted triangle at the lower end.
The three strings rest on the bridge (gaidaron), which has three notches to keep them from moving sideways. Inside the lyra, a wooden post called psychi (“soul”) is fitted. The sides of the instrument are flat and called mag’la. The neck (goula) is where the player holds the instrument.
The sound emerges from two curved or straight openings called rothonia (“nostrils”) and from small holes at their ends, on the soundboard and the sides. A typical lyra has: two holes on each side, four on the soundboard (two above and two below), and one at each end of the rothonia—twelve in total.
The strings are called zil, mesaea (“middle”), and kapan, and can be tuned higher or lower, sometimes forming a medium tonal range (zilokapano). Until around 1920, the strings were made of silk, producing a beautiful, melodic but soft sound. Alternatively, the two higher strings were silk and the third was gut. Today, the strings are metallic—two of equal thickness and one thinner, sometimes wound with wire.
The Bow
The bow is a separate and essential tool for playing the instrument. Its name derives from its curved shape. It is a long wooden implement about 50–60 cm in length, with a bundle of horsehair stretched between its two ends. The hair is tied at both ends with leather.
The cylindrical part is held by the player’s dominant hand, and the middle and ring fingers press it to keep the horsehair taut. The hair is traditionally made from the tail of a male horse.
Materials
The soundbox, pegbox, and neck are usually made from a single piece of wood, commonly plum, mulberry, walnut, cedar, or acacia, while the soundboard is made from pine or spruce. Traditionally, plum wood is considered the best. According to tradition, the grain of the soundboard affects the tone: close grains produce higher frequencies, while wider grains emphasize lower ones.
Playing Technique
When playing, the lyra player may be standing or seated. When seated, the instrument rests between the knees; when standing, it is held in front of the player. The lyra is always slightly tilted toward the non-dominant side (e.g., to the left if the player is right-handed).
Unlike the pear-shaped lyra of Crete, the Dodecanese, and Thrace—whose strings are stopped with the fingernails—the bottle-shaped Pontic lyra is played with the fingertips, like a violin.
Repertoire
The traditional repertoire of the Pontic lyra is divided into two main categories:
- Musical performance of poetry, without dance, in 3/4 rhythm with a slow and irregular tempo. This includes the so-called epitrapezia tragoudia (“table songs”).
- Dance music, with specific rhythms and optional lyrics. This category includes subgenres such as love, wedding, religious, heroic, mythological, or patriotic songs, as well as carols. Another subcategory includes the songs of Pontic dances, usually performed instrumentally, with some exceptions where the lyrics mention the dance itself.
Table Songs (Epitrapezia Tragoudia)
Table songs usually have various verses—often romantic—sometimes improvised by the lyra player. In Pontic songs, traditional playing techniques are used: the lyra is tuned in perfect fourths, and the bow typically touches two strings for most of the piece.
The player tilts the lyra slightly to the right or left depending on which string the bow is playing. The middle string (E) serves as a drone and tonal center, while the top two (A+E) or the bottom two (E+B) can be played together. Sometimes the third string (B) also acts as a drone.
Most table songs are in 5/8 rhythm, with the bow maintaining the irregular pulse. The thumb supports the lyra while the other fingers press the notes. The third finger is generally unused, although some older players occasionally use it instead of the fourth.
Love Songs
Love songs have a steady melody and tempo, usually in 9/8 rhythm, known in Pontic musical tradition as Dipat. The lyra is tuned higher—B♭–F–C—to match the singer’s vocal range. The playing style differs slightly from the one described above: the third finger is used only on the second string, while trills can be executed on all three strings with the fourth finger, and on the two outer strings with the second finger.
Words from tradition
