VARIOUS ARTISTS
Vocal Music In Crete
Smithsonian Folkways/ International Institute for Traditional Music (IIMC)
· Eleventh (and final) release in "The World's Musical Traditions" series
The vocal music of Crete – raw and elemental – is the focus of this important release. It is not an easy listen but, as is usually the case with good things, the rewards are considerable. The music is primarily choral, and what little instrumentation there is consists of violin, lyra and louta. Where there are instruments the songs are usually secular and include examples of satirical songs, love songs and songs of exile.
The Byzantine influence is particularly noticeable on the ritual wedding and funeral songs where chants predominate and doctrine forbade the use of instruments. Turkish influences can also be found in the tabakhaniotika songs – an urban café song that shares some similarities with the other Greek-Turkish hybrid rembetika. For armchair travellers and people with a deeper interest in musicology there is, as always, a comprehensive 32 page booklet.
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