Sappho was called a lyrist because, as was the custom of the time, she wrote her poems to be performed with the accompaniment of a lyre. Sappho was one of the first poets to write from the first person, describing love and loss as it affected her personally. Her style was sensual and melodic; primarily songs of love, yearning, and reflection. (http://books0977.tumblr.com/post/152006482572/sappho-playing-the-lyre-l%C3%A9opold-burthe-french) A regular Bob Dylan before her time. Sappho was a Greek lyric poet from the island of Lesbos. She was born sometime between 630 and 612 BCE, and it is said that she died around 570 BCE, but little is known for certain about her life. Sappho's poetry was well known and greatly admired through much of antiquity, and she was considered one of the canon of nine lyric poets. However, most of her poetry is now lost, and survives only in fragmentary form. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sappho)