Nisiotika

Nisiotika (Greek: νησιώτικα, meaning "insular (songs)") are the songs and dances of Greek islands with a variety of styles, played by ethnic Greeks in Greece, Turkey, Australia, the United States and elsewhere.

The lyre is the dominant folk instrument along with the laouto, violin, tsampouna and souravli with widely varying Greek characteristics.

Representative musicians and performers of Nisiotika include: Mariza Koch, credited with reviving the field in the 1970s, Yiannis Parios, Domna Samiou and the Konitopoulos family (Giorgos and Vangelis Konitopoulos, Eirini, Nasia and Stella Konitopoulou).

There are also prominent elements of Cretan music on the Dodecanese Islands and Cyclades.

Notable artists

Composers:

• Giorgos Konitopoulos
• Vangelis Konitopoulos
• Yiannis Parios
• Stamatis Hatzopoulos

Singers:

• Glykeria
• Stella Konitopoulou
• Yiannis Parios
• Domna Samiou
• Mariza Koch

Folk dances

Dancers from Astypalaia

The Aegean Islands have a rich folk dance tradition. For example; syrtos, sousta and ballos.

• Ballos
• Ikariotikos
• Kamara
• Kalymnikos
• Karavas of Naxos
• Lerikos
• Mihanikos
• Parianos
• Pentozalis
• Pirgousikos of Chios
• Pidikhtos
• Rhoditikos
• Sousta (Sousta Lerou, Sousta Tilou)
• Syrtos (Syrtos Kythnou, Syrtos Serifou, Syrtos Naxou)
• Trata

See also

• Greek folk music
• Greek dances
• Cretan music

External links

• Musipedia: Νησιώτικα