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Giorgis Koutsourelis

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Giorgis Koutsourelis was a Greek composer, born in 1914 in Kissamos on Crete. He died in the same place in June 1994. His name is linked above all to a single melody: Armenohorianos Syrtos. A syrtos is a traditional Greek folk dance, and the theme of this piece became the starting point for the song that Mikis Theodorakis wrote and that most people know as Zorba's dance.

In this way a line runs from a Cretan dance melody to one of the best-known Greek sounds in the world. Theodorakis's song belongs to the film Zorba the Greek and has been many listeners' introduction to Greek music. Anyone who wants to hear where the melody came from has to go back to the work of Koutsourelis. It shows how a folk melody from a small town on Crete travelled the world in another form. There is a compilation album of authentic recordings from the years 1935 to 1955, released in 1994, which lets you hear what Greek music sounded like in his day.

Listening

Listening tip. First listen to Zorba's dance by Mikis Theodorakis and notice how the melody keeps getting faster. Then search for a recording of a syrtos and hear which dance melody lies behind it.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

Categories: Artists