Eleni Karaindrou

The Profile

Eleni Karaindrou is a Greek composer and pianist renowned for film scores, especially her long-running collaboration with director Theo Angelopoulos. Classically trained (piano) with releases on ECM New Series, she also studied ethnomusicology in Paris and integrates Greek musical traditions into her work.

Greek composer and pianist active since the 1970s; renowned for her collaboration with film director Theo Angelopoulos; releases on ECM New Series. Classically trained in piano; studied ethnomusicology in Paris; worked with the Stuttgarter Kammerorchester; founded a laboratory for the study of traditional ethnic instruments in Greece.

Hal reviews Eleni Karaindrou’s The Weeping Meadow, highlighting her enduring artistic partnership with Theo Angelopoulos. The music blends classical training with Greek traditions and ethnomusicological insight. Noted instrumentation includes accordion, strings, horn, cello, harp, choir, and the lira of Constantinople. The album’s themes evoke epic melancholy tied to Greece’s 20th‑century history. Released on ECM New Series in 2004.