Nisiotika

Nisiotika (Greek: νησιώτικα) is the name of the songs and dances of Greek islands including a variety of Greek styles, played by ethnic Greeks in Greece, Cyprus, Australia, the United States and elsewhere.

The Aegean Islands have a well known folk dance tradition, which comes from the dances of ancient Greece like: syrtos, sousta and ballos. The lyre is the dominant folk instrument and other like laouto, violin, askomandoura with Greek characteristics vary widely. In the Aegean, the violin and the Cretan lyra are very widespread Greek musical instruments.

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

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

Greek folk dances of Nisiotika include:

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

See also

• Music of Greece
• Greek folk music
• Greek dances

References

• Musipedia: Νησιώτικα