Stephan Micus: Bavarian zither, dilruba, chitrali sitar, sattar, 14-string guitar, nay, voice. Panagia is Stephan Micus’ 20th album for ECM, and it coincides with his 60th birthday in January 2013. The Greek word Panagia is one of the names of the Virgin Mary, Mother of Christ. In a Greek Orthodox church, it is often the Panagia that is in the apse above the altar as a fresco or mosaic. She is also frequently depicted in Byzantine icons. “For all the Greeks I know, even the most radical, it is unthinkable not to respect the Panagia,” says Micus. Stephan Micus’ album takes six Byzantine Greek prayers and sets them in his own inimitable way with instruments he has collected in years of travels round the world. “The prayers are to the Virgin Mary,” says Micus, “but I also see this as a more universal work. It is not only Christian and dedicated to the Virgin Mary, but to the female energy that is everywhere in the world. The Chinese have this concept of yin and yang, and keeping the balance between them, which is very important to me. In our time, the male energy has become too overbearing, but in ancient times the gods were predominantly female. In the last 2000 years, the three monotheistic religions have over-emphasised the male aspect. I see this album as a small contribution to changing that status quo.” Stephan Micus was born in Germany in 1953, but has lived in Mallorca for many years. His first ECM album, Implosions, was released in 1977 and since then he has created 19 more using instruments of every kind collected on travels all over the world - winds, strings and percussion, including bells, gongs, stones and flower pots. He composes, records and mixes the albums in his studio in Mallorca. Micus is a one-man universe of sound and his music is very powerful and quite unique. “For me a CD is a journey,” he explains, “I am like a guide and I take the listeners on a trip, passing through different landscapes and emotions and then I bring them back”.
