The Musical Instruments

The choir of the 3rd High School of Acharnes, Greece Under Mrs. Mersini Theotokatou, teacher of Music, presents a short project on REBETICO … European Multilateral Comenius project MARE NOSTRUM 2013‐15 LISBON 2015 REBETICO The kind of urban popular music that appeared in Greece at the end of the 19th century and shaped its well‐known form until the third decade of the 20th century. Before entering the big cities Rebetico music expanded its roots and flourished in the ports, next to the harbors of Pireas, Salonica and Volos where marginal and working class people lived and worked. One of the most serious researchers of Rebetico, Elias Petropoulos, divides its history in three periods a) 1922‐32: The first period strongly influenced by the original music of Smyrna b) 1932‐42: The classical period c) 1942‐52: The period of its wide expansion and massive reception by the whole national audience The first period When the disaster of Smyrna(1922) was followed by the populations exchange between Greece and Turkey according to the Lausanne treaty (1923), Rebetico had its greatest influence by the music of Smyrna. Many Minor Asian refugees were installed in urban centers along with their musical tradition and instruments. In this period the topics of Rebetico mainly refer to love and marginal life (effort to be adapted, imprisonment, social rejection, drugs etc.). In the beginning of the 20th century Rebetico was the poor neighborhoods popular song of big cities. The Harbour of Smyrna The classical period In 1932 we have the first recordings of Marcos Vamvakaris, while until 1941 most of the classical Rebetico composers and singers appear in discography some of them are: Payioumtzis, Bayiaderas, Yianis Papaioannou, Vasilis Tsitsanis, Manolis Chiotis, Stelakis Perpiniadis, Rosa Eskenasi and an more. The dictatorship under Ioannis Metaxas (1936) imposed censorship. As a result references to drugs or anything illegal disappeared from the Rebetical lyrics and recordings leaving space to love as a unique topic. The beginning of the Second World War brought a new series of topics related to war. In 1941 the German occupation of Greece resulted the closure of discography companies and there were resulted and there were no more recordings until 1946 . The period of the massive expansion Vassilis Tsitsanis turned to be the most important personality of Rebetico music in the period of its massive expansion. By the end of the German occupation Rebetico was widely acknowledged. Vasilis Tsitsanis In the decade of the ‘60s the revival of old successful songs started along with some publications of serious studies on the subject of Rebetico. Composers of the importance of Manos Hatzidakis and Nikos Skalkotas studied profoundly the subject of Rebetico. Scalkotas, composer of classical music, included the song “Tha pao eki stin Arapia” by Vassilis Tsitsanis in the second part of his concert for two violins. Vassilis Tsitsanis The Musical Instruments The elementary musical instruments used for Rebetico are the bouzouki and guitar. The first is the basic instrument that produces the melody while the guitar keeps the rhythm. Sometimes, baglamas is used, too. It is an instrument like a small bouzouki that has higher voice extensions. Apart from that the accordion, the violin, the piano and the contrabass (playing only pizzicato) are used, too. Now and then, there is a sound of crashing glasses produced by a Greek kompoloi knocking on a glass. Musical instruments bouzouki baglamas guitar contrabass Kompoloi is not an instrument accordion but it produces a sound when knocking on a glass MULTILATERAL COMENIUS PROGRAMME ‘MARE NOSTRUM’ LISBON VISIT MARCH 2015 3rd HIGH SCHOOL OF ACHARNES.

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