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Milestones in the evolution of Cretan Music: 19th and 20th centuries
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Milestones in the evolution of Cretan Music: 19th and 20th centuries
The darkest period, in terms of information available about music, extends from the late 19th century until 1923, during which the Christian population co-existed with the Ottoman population. We have numerous structured and reliable testimonies about the musical activity of Turkish Cretans and other Ottomans in Crete until 1923, when the population exchange took place (see, for example, Thodoris Riginiotis, “The contribution of Turkish Cypriots to the Cretan musical tradition, Rethemnos newspaper, 15 March 2013), so it would be hard to believe that these people did not play music at their feasts or everyday life or that the two communities, Christian and Muslim, were so completely entrenched that the members of one could not hear the music of the other. Contrary to the literary evidence of this co-existence, however, there are scant musical samples. A monumental work for this period is the collection of Pavlos Vlastos, found in the Historical Archive of Crete, the first purely musicological collection of Cretan folk songs.
The urban songs of Crete
Giorgos Amargiannakis and Antonios Vogiatzakis or Vogiatzis (speakers)
Since the early 20th century, when the gramophone was invented, Cretan music started being recorded in Greece and America. Recordings of Cretan music were made by the musicians of Apokoronas; more specifically, the first dates back to 1907 and was made in Athens by Ioannis Karavanakis and the ‘Apollon’ record company, which was based in London and had been founded by Constantine Craies, who was of Greek-English origin. In 1911, the Athens Conservatory utilised this new invention and organised a research expedition to the village of Lakkoi on the White Mountains, where it made recordings. Charilaos Piperakis (1894–1978), who travelled to America in the early 20th century, made his first recordings of Cretan music after at least a decade of active and rich activity as a musician.
In 1926 he founded his own record label, Faros, and released 14 songs, of which five were traditional rebetika and nine were Cretan songs. The end of the war saw the advent of a generation of lyra players who would become well known in Greece mainly through their discography (Alekos Karavitis, Thanasis Skordalos, Kostas Mountakis, Spyros Sifogiorgakis, Nikos Xylouris). The function of discography is exactly opposite to the one which the instigators of the archive desire: they establish standards and impose a main style of playing and singing, which everyone soon adopts or is called upon to imitate. In this way, the developments which normally occur very slowly in the traditional music of each community accelerate and singing loses its natural way of evolution and formation. On the other hand, isolated musicians suddenly had the opportunity to become musically enriched by a wealth of rich stimuli and fruitful dialogue with their fellow artists thanks to discography.
Kontylies of eastern Crete
Alekos Karavitis (lyre, singing), Maria Karaviti and Yakinthi Karaviti (singing choir)
After the Asia Minor Catastrophe and the exchange of populations, Turkish Cretans left Crete and Greek refugees, along with Armenians from Asia Minor, came to and settled on the island.
They brought with them their mores, customs, culture and music. They had a profound influence on the Cretan tradition. Their interaction with local music resulted in new sounds that would ‘fertilise’ the urban popular songs of Crete, a key representative of which is considered to be Stelios Foustalierakis or Foustalieris from Rethymno. The interwar period gradually introduced Cretan sounds to European and American dances that were trends during that era: waltz, tango, foxtrot. Although the trend was not recorded in the discography, many Cretan instrumentalists would join the new sound to the traditional one, a great attraction to young dancers, as this radically changed the habits of entertainment, meetings between young men and women and finding a lover.
Staffidianos σκοπός, Ki that joy has the mockingbird
Antonis Vogiatzis or Bogiatzis (boulanger, song)
In addition to the discography, radio also began to function as a tool for disseminating traditional Cretan music of Crete, mainly after WWII.
In 1951, Kostas Mountakis and Thanasis Skordalos went to EIR (National Radio Foundation) to sit examinations in order to obtain the right to play the lyra and sing on the Armed forces radio station, in an effort to promote traditional music. The examination board included major artists such as Manolis Kalomiris, Simon Karas, Marios Varvologlis and Ioannis Psaroudas — an erstwhile enemy of traditional music —, all of whom found both to be competent. However, at present we can only confirm the Cretan music broadcasts made by Mountakis, accompanied by Vyzirgiannis on lute, for the programme of Simon Karas.
Sirtos / My Rose centipede
Spyros Sifogiorgakis (lyre, singing), Yannis Markogiannakis (lute), unidentified musician (guitar)
The gradual re-assessment of the value of traditional music in general and of Crete in particular during the Regime Change (Metapolitefsi) of the mid-1970s resulted in developments in the way the basic instrument, the lyra, was taught.
Kostas Mountakis began teaching the Cretan lyra by establishing schools in the major cities of Crete, such as Heraklion at the ‘Apollon Conservatory’ (1979), Rethymno (1980), Chania (1981) and Agios Nikolaos (1983). Mountakis even created a system for teaching the instrument, which tried to respect the peculiarities of students who were not versed in Western music.
Erotokritos, instrumental
Pasparaki / Mountaki lyra students (lyres)
In 1982, the local press welcomed the establishment of the first University Chair of Musicology in Greece at the University of Crete. One of the chief concerns of the Board of Governors of the University of Crete, and especially its Chairman, Grigoris Sifakis, was to launch systematic musicological research at the University. There was a grand plan for the study of Cretan music, which initially included a meeting of Cretan artists (held on 8 May 1982).
This meeting resulted, through the recordings that would ensure over the next two days, in the first musicological material-basis for an archive for the study and preservation of Cretan music. These recordings actually took place and the first 50 recordings made during that crucial three-day event are included in the archive available today (see indicatively aga_Tape_T001 to aga_Tape_T013, aga_Tape_T301 to aga_Tape_T318 and aga_Tape_T418).
This Archive would also operate as a museum and Research Centre for music with separate sectors. In terms of collecting materials, researchers sought audio recorded in films or on records by artists who were no longer living, while an effort was also made to record all the artists living on Crete at the time. Additionally, they sought out books or magazines with music recorded on sheet music or Byzantine notation, as well as other information regarding Cretan music. Finally, musical instruments or personal objects of the artists would be gathered, with a view to create a folk instrument museum. Apparently, the second part of the grand plan did not come to fruition. Since that last attempt, traditional Cretan music has changed dramatically in terms of character, style, number and type of instruments in the classical composition of the traditional zygia (duo) etc., elements which must serve as materials for future researchers.
Cephalic slides / Come on, bring your noses
Georgios Hatzidakis (lyre), Nikos Manias (lute, singing)
The darkest period in terms of information about music is that from the end of the 19th century until 1923, during which the Christian population coexisted with its Ottoman counterpart.
We have many, well-organized and reliable testimonies about the musical activity of the Turcocretans and other Ottomans in Crete until 1923 when the exchange of the populations took place (indicatively Thodoris Riginiotis, "The contribution of the Turcocretans to the Cretan musical tradition, ep. Rethymno, 15 March 2013) so it is impossible to believe that these people did not use music in their feasts or daily life or that the two communities, Christian and Muslim, were so completely entrenched that members of one could not taste the sounds of the other. Contrary to the literary evidence for this coexistence, however, musical samples are scarce. A monumental work for this period is the collection of Pavlos Vlastos in the Historical Archive of Crete, the first purely musicological collection of Cretan folk songs.
The urban songs of Crete
From the beginning of the 20th century, with the invention of the gramophone, Cretan music was recorded in Greece and America. Recordings of Cretan music were made by musicians of Apokoronas and more specifically the first one dates back to 1907 in Athens by Ioannis Karavanakis and the recording company "Apollo", which was based in London and was founded by the Greek-English Constantine Craies. In 1911 the Athens Conservatory, taking advantage of the new invention, organizes a research expedition to the village of Lakki in the White Mountains, which also makes recordings. Charilaos Piperakis (1894-1978), who went to America at the beginning of the century, made his first recordings of Cretan music, having completed at least a decade of active and rich activity as a musician there.
In 1926 he founded his own record company Faros and released 14 songs, including five traditional rebetika and nine Cretan songs. With the end of the war, a generation of lyricists appeared who became known in Greece mainly through their recordings (Alekos Karavitis, Thanasis Skordalos, Kostas Mountakis, Spyros Sifogiorgakis, Nikos Xylouris). The discography performs a function exactly opposite to what the initiators of the archive would have wanted: they establish standards, impose a central style of playing and singing, which soon everyone adopts or is asked to imitate. In this way, developments, which in the traditional music of each community are usually very slow, are accelerated and the song loses its natural way of fermentation and formation. On the other hand, however, musicians who have been isolated until then suddenly have the opportunity to grow musically through rich stimuli and fruitful dialogue with their peers, which is offered to them by discography.
Shoals of eastern Crete
After the Asia Minor Catastrophe and the exchange of populations, the Turkish Cretans left Crete and Greek refugees along with Armenians from Asia Minor came and settled on the island.
They bring with them their customs, traditions, culture and music. Their influences are strong in the Cretan tradition. with the local music will give new sounds that will fertilize the urban folk song of Crete, an important representative of which is considered the Rethymnian Stelios Foustaliereakis or Foustalieris. The interwar period will gradually place alongside the Cretan sounds the European and American dances of the train of the time: waltz, tango, fox. Although the trend was not recorded in the discography, many Cretan instrumentalists will adopt the new sound alongside the traditional one, which is very attractive to young dancers, as it changes the mores of entertainment, of getting to know each other and finding a sexual partner.
A raisin watch, And all the joy of a blackbird
Complementary to the recording industry, Radio began to function as a tool for the dissemination of the traditional music of Crete, especially after the war.
In 1951 Kostas Moundakis and Thanasis Skordalos went to the EIR to take exams so that they could be given the right to play the lyre and sing on the radio station of the Armed Forces, in an effort to promote traditional music. The committee, which included great names in the field of art such as Manolis Kalomiris, Simon Karas, Marios Varvoglis and the -oldest persecutor of traditional music- Ioannis Psaroudas, considered both of them capable. However, for the moment we can only confirm the broadcasts that Mountakis made about Cretan music, together with Vysirgiannis on the lute, in the programme of Simon Karas.
The gradual reappraisal of the value of traditional music in general and of Crete in particular, which occurred during the post-independence period, brought developments in the way of learning the basic instrument, the lyre.
Kostas Moundakis started teaching the Cretan lyre by establishing schools in the major cities of Crete, such as Heraklion at the "Apollo Conservatory" (1979), Rethymno (1980), Chania (1981) and Agios Nikolaos (1983). In fact, Moundakis formulated a system of teaching the instrument that tried to respect the particularities of students who were not familiar with Western music.
Erotocritus, organic
In 1982 the local press hailed as an event of great importance the establishment of the first university chair of Musicology in Greece, at the University of Crete. One of the main concerns of the Steering Committee of the University of Crete, and especially of its president, Gregory Sifakis, was the beginning of systematic musicological research at the University. There was a grand plan for the study of Cretan music, which initially included a meeting of Cretan artists (held on 8 May 1982).
From this, through recordings that would follow in the next two days, the first musicological material would emerge - the basis of an archive for the study and preservation of Cretan music. These recordings were indeed made and the first 50 recordings made during that crucial three-day period are in the archive you have at your disposal today (see, indicatively, aga_Tape_T001 to aga_Tape_T013, aga_Tape_T301 to aga_Tape_T318 and aga_Tape_T418). The Archive would also function as a museum and a music research centre with subsections. As for the collection of material, they would look for recorded material in films or on records from artists who were not alive and would try to record all the artists who lived in Crete at that time. At the same time they would look for books or magazines with music recorded in the pentagram or in Byzantine notation, and other information in relation to the music of Crete. Finally, musical instruments or personal objects of the artists would be collected with the prospect of becoming a museum of folk instruments. The second part of the grand plan does not seem to have materialised. Since that last attempt, the traditional music of Crete has changed dramatically in character, style, number and type of instruments in the classical composition of the traditional yoke etc., elements that should be material for the researcher of the future.
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Laboratory of Theatre, Film and Music Studies
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