Musical Selections from the mini-course "Musical Nationalism in Times of Crisis: A Greek Case Study"

Welcome to the class blog for the University of Michigan mini-course "Musical Nationalism in Times of Crisis: A Greek Case Study."

This course invites students to explore the socio-political repercussions of the current global economic crisis through the framework of music. Our case study is Greece, a nation situated on the margins of the European Union but at the focal point of the current financial and cultural crisis. Drawing from various types of musical expression, we examine how music shapes and reflects contemporary cultural and economic realities in Greece including: political and cultural globalization; the economic crisis; the balancing of regional and national governance policies and the creation of a contemporary Greek national identity.

This blog contains selected listening examples examined in this course.

Click the Class to View the Listening Assignment.

Class 1:
Introduction

Class 2: (10/06)
introduces students to the broad spectrum of "Greek music" and challenges them to question just what is "Greek" about the songs.

Class 3: (10/11)
focuses on the Eurovision Song Contest. How do Helena Paprizou and Kalomira balance "Greek" and "European" identities in their performances?

Class 4: (10/13)
introduces students to the difficult socio-economic situation in Greece. It gives a small sample of the wide range of musical responses to the contemporary crisis.

Class 5: (10/25)
challenges students to question their own definitions of music. When does a sound become "music" and when is it just plain noise?

Class 6: (10/27)
examines the phenomenon of musical nationalism. Which musical styles are promoted on local and national levels to represent the nation? Which styles are avoided and why? How does the style in which a song is performed affect its reception?

Class 7: (11/3)
introduces students to various Greek composers who composed "national Greek music." In what ways did these composers musically identify their works as Greek? Do their compositions sound "Greek" to you?

Class 8: (11/08)
examines various musical reactions to the contemporary socio-economic crisis in Greece. It focuses a) on the songs and chants of the Indignant movement and b) on the phenomenon of musical parody as a means of resistance. How can we characterize the differences between musical mockery and musical parody?

Class 9: (11/10)
focuses on various mainstream pop songs whose lyrics discuss the injustices of the contemporary Greek crisis on the Greek people. What is strange about the use of mass music production and distribution technology in an effort to resist the injustices of the Greek economic system?

Class 10 &11: (11/15 11/17)
examines the phenomenon of contemporary rebetika performance as a means of protesting the social, political and economic Europeanization of Greece. It focuses on the performances of rebetiko musician Pavlos Vassiliou and his music tavern "Rebetiki Istoria" [Rebetika History] in Athens, Greece. Why is rebetika a particularly appropriate genre for this musical resistance?

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Class 2: An Introduction to Greek Music 10/6

1. EPIRUS, GREECE: The Art of Polyphonic Singing from Music Village Summer Concert Series, 2007

2. IONIAN ISLANDS: S'ENA PAPORO MESA

3. AEGEAN ISLANDS: IKARIOTIKO from the Island of Ikaria

4. CRETE: MANTINADES from the Island of Crete

5. BYZANTINE CHANT: O TRISAGIOS YMNOS from Mt. Athos, Crete

6. GREEK NATIONAL ANTHEM: HYMNOS THS ELEFTHERIAS [Hymn to Freedom]
Music by Nikolaos Mantzaros, Text by Dionysos Solomos

-Does the Greek national anthem resemble any of the musical selections listed above? Why or why not? In what ways does this speak to issues of musical nationalism in Greece?

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