Interview with Aethelwyne

Aethelwyne is a folk vocalist based in Greece and female vocalist of the shamanic/nordic project, Munknörr.

I am happy that you found the time for this written interview, we are all looking forward to hear more about your life and music.

Would you like to tell us a little about yourself?
Hello and thank you for having me! My name is Olga (aka Aethelwyne), I come from Greece and I’m 29 years old.

We know you as Aethelwyne, what does “Aethelwyne” mean and does the names mean something special for you?
Aethelwyne means ‘friend of the elves’ and is of Anglo-Saxon origin. I came across it over a decade ago when I was looking for a suitable nickname to use for my work. Fast forward to many years later, when I became more drawn to Scandinavian Music and their singing styles, I found it was a really great choice, as Scandinavian people are often being called ‘elves’.

We know you as the vocalist in Munknörr, do you have your own projects as well and would you like to share a little?
Most people do and I’m really thankful to our project for that haha. Yes, I occasionally create songs of my own. I have released 4 songs in collaboration with other artists who wrote the music and produced the installments. I did co-produce 2 of them. The lyrics are usually based on poems I used to write when I was a university student and came up with a melody for them afterwards. I like experimenting generally speaking. The first two songs, ‘Mistborn’ and ‘At Dawn’ lean more on the folk side, whereas ‘Night Falls’ is a lo-fi, chillstep kind of piece and ‘A Witch’s Lullaby’ a musicbox attempt. No matter the genre, I always want them to be ethereal and have my signature vocals in them.

How long have you been singing?
I have been singing since I was 15. It took me a while to discover that I can actually sing, since I don’t come from a family of musicians. ‘Nightwish’ was the reason why I wanted to be involved with singing in the first place.

Have you been on a journey with singing and music in general?
Yes, I have. I remember when I first started uploading my own covers on YouTube, I was more into symphonic metal. After a while, I found myself more interested in folk music and then I also discovered ‘Myrkur’, who played a determining role to my musical path. Now, I feel like I don’t want to stick to a particular genre, but sing whatever my soul craves.

You have made some collabs would you like to share with whom?
Yes, I’ve made a ton and I’m very grateful for all of them! When it comes to covers, I really enjoyed my collabs with Morgan Nichol, Arianna Deligianni, Invadable Harmony (who is a huge star on Spotify, so proud of her!) and other skilled artists like Arianna Ferrara Gennari (amazing harpist!) and Jirka Hajek. Regarding original songs, I can’t say enough about Bjorth, Ursprung and Sagason-wonderful people and artists!
I hope I’m not forgetting anyone haha.

Would you like to do more collabs?
I’m always in for a collab! It’s very rejuvenating to work with other people, who share the same passion for music.

Do you have a favorite track yourself or maybe a band?
Oh, I have plenty! And actually it’s something that changes from time to time, plus I listen to so many different genres simultaneously! I will share with you my most listened artists of Summer haha: Bad Omens, Amanati, NightCrawl, Sundazer and Rammstein are some of them.

Where do you find your inspiration?
Anywhere! In nature, while reading a book and coming across an intriguing choice of words, in hardships, while listening to music etc.

Do you feel it is easy to find inspiration for your own music?
Yes, always! I’m a hopeless romantic, so most of the time I will write about atmospheric sceneries, things that torment my mind, life, thoughts etc.

Do you have any music education, or have you learned yourself?
I have had vocal lessons in the past and still do occasionally when working on a new song.

Do you play any instruments?
Unfortunately, no, but I’d love to be able to play the piano.