PAYING THE PIPER: THE PRIMORDIAL PITCH OF THE ANCIENTS

Iranian Canadian musicologist Farya Faraji (page) is back with one for the ages. In this episode he's talking with Greek musician Yannis Pantazis who is getting quite lyric at the sight of a bag pipe. There is something primordial about this musical instrument that deeply resonates with us on a very basic level. The history of the bag pipe in military ceremony is associated with honor and remembrance. But Pantazis believes its use originated in the very ancient orgiastic cults of Dionysus, Theseus and Orpheus* which would rhyme well with its raw nature and its associations with wild nature and the goat. In Greece the bagpipe is played across islands and regions, with distinct local names and variations. The most popular types include the tsampouna (Aegean islands), the askomandoura (Crete), and the gaida (Thrace and Macedonia). 

Jan. 12, 2026 Farya Faraji: Greek Bagpipes with Yannis Pantazis - Epic Conversations.

*The Lord of Spirits episode 128, "Magical Mystery Tour" dealt with pagan mystery cults (link) (playlist). 

- More on music videos, Farya Faraji, Dimitris Dallas, Greece -