Éntekhno (, , pl: ''éntekhna'' 'tragoudia'' is

orchestral music An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, a ...

with elements from Greek folk

rhythm Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular r ...

and

melody A melody (), also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most literal sense, a melody is a combination of Pitch (music), pitch and rhythm, while more figurativel ...

. Its lyrical themes are often based on the work of famous Greek poets. Éntekhno arose in the late 1950s, drawing on

rebetiko Rebetiko (, ), plural rebetika ( ), occasionally transliterated as rembetiko or rebetico, is a term used to designate previously disparate kinds of urban Greek music which in the 1930s went through a process of musical syncretism and develope ...

's westernization by

Vassilis Tsitsanis Vassilis Tsitsanis ( 18 January 1915 – 18 January 1984) was a Greek songwriter and bouzouki player. He became one of the leading Greek composers of his time and is widely regarded as one of the founders of modern Rebetiko and Laiko music. Tsi ...

and Manolis Chiotis.

Mikis Theodorakis Michail "Mikis" Theodorakis ( ; 29 July 1925 – 2 September 2021) was a Greek composer and lyricist credited with over 1,000 works. He scored for the films '' Zorba the Greek'' (1964), '' Z'' (1969), and '' Serpico'' (1973). He was a three-ti ...

and

Manos Hatzidakis Manos Hatzidakis (also spelled Hadjidakis; ; 23 October 1925 – 15 June 1994) was a Greek composer and theorist of Greek music, widely regarded as one of the greatest Greek composers of all time. He was one of the main proponents of the " Ént ...

were the most popular early composers of éntekhno

song cycles A song cycle () is a group, or cycle, of individually complete songs designed to be performed in sequence, as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice or an ensemble, or rarely a combination of solo songs mingl ...

Origins

As opposed to other forms of Greek urban folk music, éntekhno concerts would often take place outside a hall or a night club in the

open air Open air, open-air or openair may refer to: *''Open Air'', a BBC television program *Open-air cinema or outdoor cinema *Open-air concert, a concert taking place outside *Open-air museum, a distinct type of museum exhibiting its collections out-of- ...

and

Manos Hadjidakis Manos may refer to: Films * The Hands (film), ''The Hands'' (film) (Spanish: ''Las manos''), a 2006 Argentinean-Italian film * ''Manos: The Hands of Fate'', 1966 horror film Other uses * Manos (album), ''Manos'' (album), by The Spinanes * Manos (n ...

were the most popular early composers of éntekhno art-popular songs. They were both educated in

Classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

and -among other reasons- the lacking of a wide public for this kind of music in Greece, drove them to the invention of Éntekhno, in which they transferred some values of Western art music. Other significant Greek songwriters included Stavros Kouyoumtzis, Manos Loïzos, and Dimos Moutsis. Significant lyricists of this genre are

Nikos Gatsos Nikos Gatsos (; 8 December 1911 – 12 May 1992) was a Greek poet, translator and lyricist. Biography According to Harvard University, he "had a profound influence on the post-war generation of Greek poets. Writing of both loss and hope, Gatsos� ...

, Manos Eleftheriou and poet Tasos Livaditis. By the 1960s, innovative albums helped éntekhno become close to mainstream, and also led to its appropriation by the

film industry The film industry or motion picture industry comprises the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking, i.e., film production company, production companies, film studios, cinematography, animation, film production, screenwriting, pre- ...

for use in soundtracks.

Works

Notable ''éntekhno'' works include: *''Six folk paintings'' (

, 1951) *''Epitaphios'' (

, 1960, poetry by Yiannis Ritsos) *''Epifania'' (

, 1962, poetry by Giorgos Seferis) *'' Dead brother's song'' (

, 1962) *''Mikres Kyklades'' (

, 1963, poetry by

Odysseas Elytis Odysseas Elytis (; , pen name of Odysseas Alepoudelis, ; 2 November 1911 – 18 March 1996) was a Greek poet, man of letters, essayist and translator, regarded as the definitive exponent of romantic modernism in Greece and the world. He is one ...

) *"To Axion Esti" (

, 1964, poetry by

) *'' Gioconda's Smile'' (

, 1965) *''Romiossini'' (

, 1966, poetry by Yiannis Ritsos) *''Ballos'' ( Dionysis Savvopoulos, 1970) *''O Megalos Erotikos'' (

, 1972) *''Eighteen Short Songs of the Bitter Motherland'' (

, 1973, poetry by Yiannis Ritsos) *''Our Great Circus'' ( Stavros Xarchakos for the theatrical play of Iakovos Kambanellis, 1974) *''Tetralogia'' ( Dimos Moutsis, 1975, poetry by Constantine P. Cavafy, Kostas Karyotakis, Yiannis Ritsos and Giorgos Seferis) *''Stavros tou Notou'' (Southern Cross) (

Thanos Mikroutsikos Athanasios "Thanos" Mikroutsikos (; 13 April 1947 – 28 December 2019) was a Greece, Greek composer and politician. He is considered one of the most important composers of the recent Greek musical scene. Biography Personal life He was born on ...

, 1979, poetry by Nikos Kavvadias)

Artists

''Composers:'' *

* Manos Loïzos * Yannis Markopoulos *

* Dimos Moutsis *

Mimis Plessas Dimitrios "Mimis" Plessas (; 12 October 1924 – 5 October 2024) was a Greek musician, composer, conductor and pianist. Life and career Plessas was born in Athens. He attended the Lycée Léonin school in the Athens suburb of Nea Smyrni, and ...

* Stavros Xarchakos *

(lyricist) *Manos Eleftheriou (lyricist) ''Singers:'' * Haris Alexiou * Giorgos Dalaras * Nikos Xilouris * Maria Dimitriadi * Maria Farantouri * Manolis Mitsias *

Nana Mouskouri Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri ( ; born 13 October 1934) is a Greek singer and politician. Over the span of her career, she has released an estimated 450 albums in at least thirteen languages, including Greek language, Greek, French language, French, ...

*Nena Venetsanou *Grigoris Bithikotsis * Dimitris Mitropanos

New Wave

A form of éntekhno which is even closer to western classical music was introduced during the mid-1960s, which was called New Wave and was a mixture of éntekhno and

chanson A (, ; , ) is generally any Lyrics, lyric-driven French song. The term is most commonly used in English to refer either to the secular polyphonic French songs of late medieval music, medieval and Renaissance music or to a specific style of ...

s from

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. One of the first contributors to the genre was Dionysis Savvopoulos, who mixed American musicians like

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

and

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American guitarist, composer, and bandleader. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa composed Rock music, rock, Pop music, pop, jazz, jazz fusion, orchestra ...

with Macedonian folk music and politically incisive lyrics. In his wake came more folk-influenced performers like Arleta, Mariza Koch, Mihalis Violaris, Kostas Hatzis and the composer Giannis Spanos. This music scene flourished in a specific type of '' boîte de nuit''.Takis Kalogeropoulos: "Neo Kyma" in ''Lexiko tis Ellinikis mousikis'', Athens 1998–99.
online version
.

Artists

* Arleta * Keti Chomata * Kostas Hatzis * Mariza Koch * Rena Koumioti * Yiannis Parios * Giannis Poulopoulos * Dionysis Savvopoulos * Giannis Spanos * Mihalis Violaris *

Giorgos Zographos Giorgos Zographos (Greek: , ; born 4 August 1936; body discovered 12 August 2005) was a Greek musician and actor. Biography Georgios Zographos was born in Athens in 1936, the son of actors Nikos Zographos and Alikē Zographou. He started his car ...

Contemporary éntekhno

Contemporary éntekhno is the form of éntekhno that emerged in the 1980s and is mostly what éntekhno means when used in context today.

Artists

* Eleftheria Arvanitaki (contemporary laïkó) * Haris Alexiou (laïkó-éntekhno) * Giannis Haroulis * Alkinoos Ioannidis ( Cypriot singer) * Katsimihas Brothers * Yannis Kotsiras * Stamatis Kraounakis (laïkó and éntekhno composer and performer) * Christos Kyriazis * Lavrentis Mahairitsas * Savina Yannatou * Miltos Paschalidis *

Sokratis Malamas Sokratis Malamas (Greek: Σωκράτης Μάλαμας) (born September 29, 1957) is a Greek singer and songwriter. Biography Sokratis Malamas was born on September 29, 1957, in Sykia in Chalkidiki, Greece. His family moved to Stuttgart, Ge ...

* Thanassis Papakonstantinou *

Nikos Papazoglou Nikolaos "Nikos" Papazoglou (in Greek: Νίκος Παπάζογλου; 20 March 1948 – 17 April 2011) was a Greek singer-songwriter, musician, and producer from Thessaloniki. Papazoglou began performing in a number of Greek local groups in th ...

* Alkistis Protopsalti (contemporary laïkó, éntekhno pop) * Tania Tsanaklidou * Nikos Xydakis (composer and musician only) * Natassa Bofiliou (composer and musician only,éntekhno)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Entekhno Music of Greece

Origins

Works

Artists

New Wave

Artists

Contemporary éntekhno

Artists

See also

References