Ciel: Tales from the Box

Tales from the Box is a collaboration between accordionist Thanos Stavridis and cellist Stella Tempreli. This debut from the duo takes the title of Ciel (‘blue’ or ‘sky’ in French) and is a pan-Mediterranean instrumental journey spanning influences from their native Greece all the way to Portugal.

Stavridis is a veteran of the Greek and Balkan music scene, a founder member of Northern Partners, Cabaret Balkan and Drom. Tempreli is a graduate of Thessaloniki’s University of Macedonia’s cello programme and brings a certain classical grace to the performances. On certain tracks, the duo is also accompanied by Dimitris Angelakis and Dimitris Zacharakis on vibraphone, Yiannis Papatriantafyllou and Giotis Kiourtsoglou on bass, Nikos Vargiamidis and Dimitris Klonis on drums and Angelos Polychronou and Christos Tassios on percussion.

While the tempo occasionally lifts into a waltz or a bossa, in general the atmosphere is as serene and languid as the Mediterranean environment they have set out to depict in musical form. The result – largely composed by Stavridis, with a JS Bach composition to close – is almost stately, highly refined and delicately palatable. This is maybe not a Mediterranean of sweat and wildfires, but it is certainly a Mediterranean of blue skies and endless sunsets.