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Folk Dance Federation of California, South, Inc.
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The northern provinces of Greece, Macedonian and Thrace are exceptionally rich and varied as regards the expressive traditions of music and dance. Located at both the crossroads of Europe and Asia and at a pivotal point in the Balkans, these regions have for centuries been the meeting places of a variety of ethno-linguistic groupings and regional and intra-regional political units. Thrace, located at the southeastern most part of the Balkans, and hence Europe, reflects this heritage in the numerous peoples who populate it even today: Greeks, Turks, Bulgarians, Pomaks, Gagauz, Albanians, Roma, and more.
With the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the resulting wars that ravaged the area between 1912 and 1922, the mosaic pattern of overlapping ethnic groups was greatly simplified. The finalization of national borders between Greece, Bulgaria, and Turkey forced hundreds of thousands of people to leave their homes and resettle in their respective national "homelands." As a result, the entire Greek population of eastern Thrace (Bulgaria), also known as "Eastern Rumelia," were resettled in western Thrace (Greece) and in Greek Macedonia. These Greeks included not only Greek speaking Orthodox Christians but also large numbers of Albanian speaking people (Makra Yefira, Zaloufi, Kessani, etc. in eastern Thrace) and Turkish speaking Gagauz Orthodox Christians (from eastern and northern Thrace, especially Varna). Greek Thrace still includes a large number of Muslims (Turks and Pomaks) who reside in Komotini and Xanthi counties. The former Greek communities of Bulgarian Thrace were located primarily on the Black Sea coast; in villages between Yambol and Topolovgrad (Kavakli) and in the vicinity of Plovdiv-Assenovgrad; while those of Turkish Thrace were found on the Maramara coast, on the right bank of the Evros (Maritsa) River, and on the southern slopes of the Strandza Mountains. (My own grandparents came from Kırklareli, Strandzha and Neoi Epivates (Selim Pasha) on the Marmara Sea.)
What should be stressed is the basic unity of Thracian folk culture that transcends these linguistic and religious groupings. Hence, the Greeks of the Kavakli region were basically the same as their neighboring Bulgarians in terms of traditional dress, preferred musical instruments, dance style, melodic tunes, etc. While attending the Koprivştica Festival in 1986 I noticed a performing group from the Yambol region whose women wore dress very similar to that worn by the former Greek (Greek and Albanian speaking) inhabitants of Makra Yefira in eastern Thrace. Upon inquiring I discovered that indeed, they were originally from Uzunköprü (the Turkish name for Makra Yefira) and left to settle in Bulgaria after the Balkan Wars. Although I do not have first-hand knowledge of the dance traditions of the Greeks of this region it would not surprise me to learn that it is the same as what I saw performed by the Bulgarian villagers on stage. That is not to say that differences do not exist among these ethnic groups, and they would probably the first to point them out. However, the overall similarities are much greater. The basic folk culture of these peasant peoples was defined by their respective geographic-cultural sub-regions rather than by their membership in a greater "national" ethnic group.
Music and dance were essential elements of all village and family-oriented celebrations throughout the Balkans and Anatolia. In Thrace as elsewhere the most important rite of passage, the wedding, in which the entire village participated in the establishment of a new social unit, was and is one of the best times to observe traditional music and dance. And as at other times, music and dance is defined by both its ritual and social functions. Dance and music also accompany the many ritual events of the calendar year: pre-Lenten carnival (that is, Kopek Bey in Didimotichon, Kaloyeros in Kosti); Tzamala, St. Demetrios Day festival; Epiphany Day Carols; May Day Carols; and Midwives Day (Tis Babos) during which the women would "take over" the village for a day and celebrate with the public freedom of men, etc. Many of these rituals are accompanied by mummers-type plays, fertility-oriented gestures, and quite ribald song lyrics. With the passing away of the old tradition-bound agriculturally oriented village life, most of these events have lost their ritual functions and are now enacted more as staged "performances." One ritual that is still very much alive, however, is the annual walking across a bed of hot coals in honor of St. Constantine on May 21 by members of the religious sect called Anastenaria. Originating in the region of Kosti near the Black Sea, this ritual was brought to Greece when the Greeks fled the Bulgarian occupation of their lands. Believing themselves "seized" by the saint through the medium of music, especially the beat of the Daouli (drum), the celebrants "dance" in ecstasy across the coals.
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Within the greater region of Thrace we can distinguish several sub-regions. Probably the greatest difference is that among the coastal areas, especially of eastern Thrace, and the inland regions that represent most of Thrace. The Marmara Sea areas of Gallipoli, Ganohora, Redestos, and Silivri belong to the island and coastal traditions of western Asia Minor, and show the marked urban influence emanating from Constantinople (İstanbul). Here the preferred dances are the Island-style Syrtos, Hasapiko, Karsilamas, Zeybekiko, Sousta Politiki, and Tsiftelli. By the turn of the century European couple dances, such as the Waltz, Tango, Polka, and Mazurka were all the rage, especially in the larger villages and towns. Besides the more local folk songs, both western influenced cantadha tunes in Greek and the İstanbul semi-classical Sharki and popular Cafe Aman tunes in Turkish were well known not only on the coast but also in the larger urban centers of the interior, that is, Kırk-Kilisse, Edirne, etc.
Some of the more distinct regions of inland Thrace include the Evros River valley of West Thrace and the Tundzha River valley of North Thrace. These two regions today still show a strong attachment to traditional music and dance – the first region being famous for its musicians and singers. Here we can also note three sub-regions: Soufli, with its more urbane and "softer" dance character; Didymotichon, where most of the performers above originate; and Orestiada, that shows similarities to north Thracian dance.
The Greeks of the second region now reside in Macedonia and Thessaly and include the inhabitants of the old villages of Kavakli, Monastiri, Boyiliki, and Karyes. The dances of this region make use of greater syncopation in weight changes than the first region, and have the most complicated of step variations for the pan-Thracian Zonaradhiko dance. Other regions include the Black Sea coastal areas of Kosti and Anchialos-Bana, that show less urban influence than one might expect. The Bana region is known for its local dances that are characterized by small quick steps and "pounding" movements.
Dance music can be either instrumental, choral, or a combination of both. Much ritual-oriented dance events are often more vocally oriented, such as the Easter woman's dance I Ghalani from Didimotichon in which the dancers accompany themselves singing. The ensembles of the towns, some villages, and coastal regions consist of clarinet, violin, outi (a type of lute), or a banjo-type instrument called tzimbisi, and darabukka (hourglass-shaped hand drum). This type of ensemble reflects the strong influence of the urban centers of İstanbul and Edirne, and has gradually replaced the older village instruments. Of these older, more traditional instruments, the most common throughout Thrace is the gaida, a bagpipe with a single chanter and a separate drone pipe. Another Thracian dance instrument is the lyra, a rebec-type three-stringed bowed chordophone (a class of stringed instruments), that today has virtually disappeared except in the Anastenaria villages. These instruments are played either solo or accompanied by the darabukka, daire (frame drum), or daouli (a large double-headed drum played with two beaters). Also found in Thrace is the zyghia ensemble composed of two zournas (conical double-reed wind instruments) and daouli, and as in Macedonia, the players are most often Roma. Sometimes the shepherd's flutes, floyera and kaval, would also accompany dance events. Today the accordion has become popular especially with the north Thracians now resident in Macedonia.
Dance music tends to be brisk and even-tempoed. The dance repertoire consists primarily of relatively simple line dances and improvised face-to-face couple dances. Traditionally, the line dances were composed of segregated chains of dancers with the men at the front end and the women at the back end. Usually married individuals had preference over unmarried people and always the last male and first female in a dance line had to be closely related. This rule no longer holds and nowadays the dance lines are mixed irregardless of sex and status. (Formerly ony on certain holidays would one find dance lines "alatzatka" where married couples dance as partners in line.)
The most well known and common line dance of Thrace is the Zonaradikos. The name refers to the linkage commonly used to form the dance line – a front basket arm position holding on to one's "partners" sash called "zonari." It seems that much of Thrace-standardized dance names are a more recent phenomenon and the same dance could be called by different names depending on a preferred hand hold or step variant. Hence the Zonaradikos was also called Dhiaghokoto (if the shoulder hold was used), Issios (if the front basket hold is used), and Douzikos (even), Plalto (quick), Mesa Exo (in and out), and in north Thrace Tsesto (straight). The Zonaradikos in 6/8 (3.3) is most often found in a three-measure simple or double form (three measures in, plus three measures out from circle center). A four-measure variant was common in the Black Sea region, while a five-measure variant called Kouseftos is known in Didimotichon.
Other line dances include various sta tria- and sta dhio-type dances; the first type includes the various Stavrota dances of Soufli while the second includes the various Syrto dances in a variety of time signatures – 2/4, 7/16 (2.2.3), and 9/16 (2.2.2.3), such as Xisyrtos, Koutsos, Kastrinos, and Ap' to Heri. Also common is the dance Paiduska or Baiduska 5/16 (2.3). The variant from West Thrace has in the past decades spread throughout northern Greece, and is also found throughout Bulgaria and even Macedonia. Characteristic of many of these dances is the rhythmic swinging of arms during certain dance measures. One dance not found just in Thrace but throughout north Greece and in Aegean Asia Minor is the Hasapiko or Kasapkia. Other dances of a more local provenance include the north Thracian Ta Tria 2/4 (similar to the Bulgarian Trite Pati; the stamping dances such as Dahdirti and Podaraki; the left-moving ZervosSfarlis 9/16 (2.2.2.3) from Bana. There also are a number of dances that are rarely done any more (except among performing groups) such as Tapnos, Troiro, Dolazato, Kara-kaldarim, Exi, etc.
In general, Thracian style can be characterized by its "solid" and "firm" movements. Dance steps tend to remain close to the floor and the knee tends to "break" downwards. Highly improvised steps performed by the dance chain leader in an almost "solo" fashion, so characteristic of men's dances in southern Greece and the islands, are not the rule in Thrace. Rather, steep variants are performed by a group of men and/or women together as a unit; for example the Zonaradikos from Monastiri, the Xisyrtos from Evros, etc. The leader is limited to simple heel slaps and controls the opening and closing of the semi-circle formation, that is, the Koulouriasto figures in the Zonaradikos.
Today music and dance still enjoy great popularity among Thracian communities, but changes have inevitably "crept in," both as a result of a natural evolution of dance style and a conscious copying of "foreign" styles. As an example, the Zonaradikos is usually perfomed by west Thracians using the shoulder hold and not the belt hold. The younger generation even tends to dance Hasapika steps to Zonaradika melodies. Among Thracians of Macedonia, the Pontic Tik nowadays often replaces the Mandilatos. Indeed almost all younger Thracians now dance the Pontic Kotsari, the Macedonian Gaida and Eleno Mome, the southern Greek Kalamatiano, as well as Rock and even Break Dance. At the same time, the Thracian Paiduska and Mesa Exo Zonaradiko are now a part of the standard dance repertoire throughout central and eastern Macedonia.
Used with permission of the author.