Recording 14 songs in as many languages required Savina Yannatou to call on all of her training. “Even though we could understand how to play a folk song,” she explains, “it didn’t mean that I know how to ‘sing’ in a particular language.” She sought out musicians from all over the Mediterranean, learning how to pronounce every word and understand each local dialect. She also pored through hundreds of Mediterranean folk songs on CDs, tapes, and old 78 rpm records. On Mediterranea, Savina remains firmly rooted in tradition, yet interprets these songs in a truly modern way.