Monsieur Doumani

Monsieur Doumani is a 3-piece Cypriot band formed in Nicosia in 2011. Nominated for 'Best Newcomer' in Songlines Music Awards 2014, Monsieur Doumani consists of Antonis Antoniou (tzouras), Angelos Ionas (guitar) and Demetris Yiasemides (wind instruments). Although each member of the band comes from a different musical background all three are influenced by Cypriot folklore on various levels. They focus on rearranging Cypriot traditional songs adding their own particular color to the sound and feeling of the songs. They also compose their own songs in the Cypriot dialect, which are inspired by contemporary Cypriot society, as for example the recent financial crisis that hit the island and the corrupted political system. Even though their musical education was mainly oriented towards Western musical paths, neither of them has ever ignored the simplicity, the beauty and the unique melodies of their land's traditional music. It is this uniqueness that Monsieur Doumani has focused upon, enriching traditional songs with new arrangements, melodies, rhythms and sounds and crafting a style distinctively their own. The traditional element is highlighted through the diversity of musical styles echoed in the group's fresh and daring approach to the Cypriot folklore. In May 2013 Monsieur Doumani released its first full-length album entitled 'Grippy Grappa', which gained them a nomination for 'Best Newcomer' in the acclaimed Songlines Music Awards 2014. The album Grippy Grappa, which is mainly comprised of re-workings of traditional Cypriot pieces, has received excellent reviews from international media such as the British newspaper «The Guardian», the French magazine «Les InRocks» and the music magazine «fRoots». Their album was «Top of the World» in the 95th issue of «Songlines» magazine and it reached No.12 in the World Music Network's August charts while their song "Out-of-touch guy" reached No.4 in the WMN's November video charts and was also included in Songlines magazine's 'Top of the World' compilation album. In 2012 they produced their first limited-edition EP 'Cyfolk', consisting of 8 rearrangements of Cypriot folk songs. The album was distributed only in Italy and it is now out of stock. In August 2012, Monsieur Doumani represented Cyprus at the Ferrara Buskers Festival and was awarded the 3rd place for the most favored group of the festival.