The Peloponnese is the southernmost peninsula of mainland Greece, a mountainous region linked to the rest of the country only by a narrow strip of land. It is one of the most important regions for lovers of ancient Greece, home to the sacred and cultural sites of Epidaurus, Corinth, Olympia, Mycenae, Sparta, and more. Beyond its classical heritage, there are also many exquisite Byzantine centers to explore, such as Monemvasia and Mystras, not to mention its outstanding natural beauty and awe-inspiring horizons.

Music accompanied most, if not all, rites of passage, communal events, and private life in ancient Greece. Below are a few of the most well-known and important instruments of the ancient Greek world. I’ve also included origin stories and myths for some of the Greek instruments — the gods, places, and plants that were connected to the sounds of the ancient landscape.

The lyre, kithara, aulos, frame drum…ancient instruments that create a sound so earthen, it makes the hairs on my arms stand on end.
Here is a curated selection of modern artists playing the ancient Greek sounds, as well as modern interpretations of the ancient Greek songs.

Artemis is primarily a goddess of nature — a huntress and protectress of wild things. One of her most well-known sanctuaries is tucked inside a fertile valley in Attica, where the Erasinos River meets the sea. After so many years of adoring and studying the goddess, I finally was able to make Pilgrimage to the sacred wetlands of her temple at Brauron (Βραυρώνα).

We venture into the valley of Lake Stymphalia (Λίμνη Στυμφαλία). A storm hovers over the valley, the filtered light illuminating a patchwork of cultivated earth. This entire region is sacred to the goddess Artemis in her form of Artemis Stymphalia, protectress of the lake, fowl and forests.