In the history of rebetiko music, Skopelos has always been a landmark. This purely Greek music genre has left a mark on the island, visible to this day. Especially in summer, there are several local musician ensembles of all ages –professionals and non-professionals- that one can enjoy. They usually play in taverns, mainly in Hora –the main town on the island.
Giorgos Xintaris, a native of the island and one of the rebetiko revivalists in Greece in the 1980s, is the ideal interlocutor for our musical journey.
“I was born in 1952 in Skopelos and ever since I was a child I remember listening to clarinets and violins. We used to listen to rebetiko songs in taverns and in every house where there was a gramophone. I left for Athens when I was fifteen and the first thing I bought was a bouzouki. I paid five hundred drachmas for the instrument and one hundred for the case!” he says laughing and continues: “Everyone was making fun of me. Everyone laughed at me. But I was very fond of it. I was working at a construction site back then and after work, I’d go home and play as much as I could. In the end I became really good and made my living as a musician.”
“To Minore Tis Avgis (The Dawn’s Minor)”, the most successful television series with reference to rebetiko, the discography and the collaborations with leading artists are important milestones in Giorgos Xintaris’ career.
His “Rebetiki Istoria” –a small venue in Athens dedicated to rebetiko music where the best musicians of the genre would played, with patrons reverently listening without microphones, as well as his “Anatoli” in Skopelos constitute major landmarks in the history of rebetiko music. Personally, I cannot think of a more ideal place than “Anatoli” to enjoy this particular musical genre; the tables are set on the steps leading to the top of the castle in Skopelos Hora.
It’s ten o’clock. The guests take their seats and after a while conversations give way to the exhilarating tunes of bouzouki and baglamas (without microphones, of course). Both sons of Giorgos Xintaris, Antonis and Thodoris, are part of the ensemble, playing bouzouki and guitar respectively. With them, Giorgos Anagnostou also plays bouzouki.
Rebetiko: the continuous and consistent musical tradition of Skopelos
For three hours the ears feast on music, and by the end the picture was as follows: George Xintaris at the head of the table was singing, accompanied by his sons and four other instrumentalists – all passionate amateurs.
Encounters like this leave an indelible impression, adding immense value to the travel experience. There is nothing like enjoying live music among blossoming geraniums on the cobblestones, in a place that soothes the soul.
Delicious food, mellow wine, intimacy, laughter and impromptu dancing add to the whole experience.
It is all these elements that forge loving bonds between Greece and its guests from every corner of the world.
Skopelos’ Rebetiko festival
Skopelos Rebetiko Festival followed shortly after the inclusion of rebetiko in the list of UNESCO for the “Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity” in 2017.
The conditions were ripe and fortunately the opportunity to promote the beautiful island of Sporades through the long tradition of rebetiko music was not wasted. In 2018, the Cultural and Folklore Association of Skopelos launched the festival “Days of Rebetika in Skopelos” (https://www.rembetikoskopelosfestival.com/) , which this year will be held from 13 to 16 July and is dedicated to Marko Vamvakaris.
Apart from the daily musical performances, the programme also includes an exhibition of folk instruments by a luthier, seminars on bouzouki and accordion with the virtuosos Manolis Pappos and Dasho Kurti respectively, speeches by Evelina Angelou (wife of Stelios Vamvakaris) and journalist and performer Eleni Falirea among others, as well as a screening of the remarkable film “Markos” by Nikos Skaretzos.
But let’s now have a word with Kostas Kalafatis, the initiator of the festival and a renowned musician of the genre: “Love is always the driving force. That’s what pushed me towards rebetiko, when I was still a student in Patras. Later I found myself playing all over Greece in small venues and events with Bampi Gole, George Xintaris and others. Xintaris is “responsible” for the fact that I was registered as a citizen of Skopelos. Ever since I first came in 1977, I have never left”
From the conversation with Kostas Kalafatis I understood that the main goal of the Festival is the essential meeting of local musicians and residents, with guest artists and visitors.
“Such encounters, as well as the festival’s conviviality, give meaning to the celebration” he says and goes on to explain: “Rebetiko, especially after its inclusion as a World Heritage item in UNESCO, must be shared but also honoured. Since last year, when the festival did not take place, for obvious reasons, we have been planning to invite companies from abroad, (France, Sweden, Belgium, etc.) that play rebetiko in a remarkable way. Unfortunately we did not succeed. Hopefully we will be able to do it next year”.
For us, it is the ideal time to visit the beautiful island of Sporades and enjoy a musical holiday. Morning swimming in crystal clear waters under the beautiful shade of pine trees, rebetiko melodies in the evening to ease the soul under the starry sky in Skopelos Hora. Have Fun.
