Under the vaulted Art-Nouveau stained glass of Espace Julien, Melina Vlachos transcended boundaries—her voice soaring with melismatic grace and emotional depth that held the packed hall in rapture. Surrounded by an ensemble of masterful musicians, Melina braided Greek and Balkan traditions with modern pop and whispered electronic textures—each arrangement a delicate tapestry of sound. Her oud and vocal ornamentations soared and dipped, inviting the audience on an intimate journey through poetic landscapes and urban dreams.
Melina
Melina Vlachos was born into a family where music lived not on paper, but in breath and memory—a living tradition passed from voice to voice. With roots in Greece and heart tuned to the pulse of oral heritage, she found her expression early in a voice both intricate and emotionally raw.
She began with classical violin, winning the prestigious Petits Longs Thibaud Prize at just ten. But it was in the textured world of traditional music that she found her true home. At her house, Greek melodies floated through the air like lullabies—her parents, both musicians, opened her ears to the mysteries of maqâms and the intimate language of oral transmission.
Her journey took her to Greece, studying oriental violin under Kyriakos Gouventas, and later to master vocal traditions with Katerina Papadopoulou and Gülseren. At the Conservatory of Oriental Music in Gennevilliers, she trained in both voice and oud, earning top honors while studying under Rachid Brahim-Djelloul and Yousef Zayed.
But Melina’s artistry doesn’t end with music. A lover of literature and once a student at the Sorbonne, her writing weaves itself into every lyric. Her songs are lived-in poems, blending word and melody with the same care she gives to every ornamented phrase. Dance, too, plays a vital role in her craft—her performances are not just heard but felt, moved by a body that speaks its own language.
Though deeply rooted in tradition, her compositions transcend it—brilliantly intertwining Balkan, Eastern, and pop influences with contemporary arrangements and a subtle dose of electronic textures.
The result? A sound world that is both ancient and new. Poetic, raw, and a little bit magical. Her inspirations stretch wide—from The Dø to Eleni Vitali, Rosalia to Shakira.
Surrounding her are three exceptional collaborators: Doğan Poyraz – a wizard of percussion, fusing traditional beats with unshakable groove, Miloš Kunç Radun – a Czech keyboard prodigy whose synths sing with Eastern soul, and Nils Peschanski, an alchemist of sound, layering textures that shimmer and pulse. Together, they form a world entirely their own. Melina’s five-track eponumus debut EP, came out in June 2025, and is the first spell cast from this new musical constellation.
Melina invites listeners into a world where pop meets tradition and the mix is not preserved in glass, but alive—dancing, dreaming, and constantly transforming. This is only the beginning. The thread has been pulled, the tapestry is unfolding—and the journey promises to be both intimate and boundless.
Photo by: Alice Guelil
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