Nikos Xylouris and Giannis Markopoulos are two significant figures for the Greeks and particularly for the Cretans.
In 1971 they created an album, called Rizitika, which has stayed in the hearts of Greeks until today, as it spoke to their emotions and memories as nothing else.
Rizitika comes from the Greek word ‘rizes’ which means roots. They are mostly rebel or lamenting songs with allegorical lyrics referring to fighters and the fierce free spirit of Crete.
Zzyrus refers to this album in his blog and presents a small historical piece of information on the artists that contributed to its creation. Cretan music might not be a popular music or ideal for everyone, but it is unique, powerful and under-represented online, thus Zzyrus’ blog is a nice and welcomed contribution.
my favorite things about my wonderful visit to Kreta were the warm people and hearing Cretan music EVERYWHERE, folk music such as this, on the bus, for example. Hope this has not changed.
of course then comes the architechture, the landscape, and the sea…