Thrace: The Paths of Dionysus

The Rodopi Ensemble, comprising violin, clarinet, kanun, assorted percussion and lute plus vocals, was formed during the 1990s in this north-eastern province of Greece, though only leader and singer Drosos Koutsokostas – performing a capella on ‘Mia Paraskevi’ – appears at all in Greek discographies, TV broadcasts or YouTube videos. Their commercial debut – appropriately for dance-happy Thrace – showcases the numerous local rhythms, including the 6/8 zonarádikos, the 7/8 mandilátos ‘Margoudi’ and the 5/8 ‘Baidouska’ as well as borrowings like the north Aegean bállos.

Melodies as well as beats are pan-regional. For example ‘Kita Me Glikia Mou Agapi’, which is known as ‘Gledai Me, Gledai Me Libe’ over the border in Bulgaria. Asia Minor refugee contributions to Thracian music are represented by ‘Tsakitzis’ – about a Robin Hood-ish 19th-century brigand from western Anatolia, equally beloved in modern Turkey as ‘İzmir'in Kavakları’ – and the waltz ‘Menexédes Kai Zouboulia’, a melody esteemed across Greece with various lyrics and titles, previously performed by Himerinoi Kolymvites on 23 Kokkina Fota (recommended in #137). Liner notes are sometimes awkwardly translated from Greek and the sound quality is decent, if a bit heavy on the bass.