Crete – Singing Up the Sun
Ambience: Men singing in tavern, Cretan songs, men’s voices acapella, rezydika
We’re in the village of Karanos in northwestern Crete. It’s late in the evening and most of the villagers have gone home after celebrating their annual Cherry Harvest Festival. But for some of the men of Karanos, the evening is just getting started. I’m Jim Metzner, and this is the Pulse of the Planet.
It’s often the custom after a festival for the men of Crete to gather in a local tavern to sing. I’m told that there are hundreds of songs, and that some of them go back to the 18th century, if not before. They are called rezydika. Babis Constodolykes was born in Karanos. He works nearby in the city of Chania, but returns to his home village every weekend.
“Rezydika means ‘songs from the root of the mountain.’ So we have a few old people who continue to sing these songs and to keep this tradition. And this is the most valuable heritage that we carry here.”
One man will begin a stanza of song, and the rest of the company is obliged to repeat it. The lyrics are partly fixed, partly improvised. Here’s a sample:
When tears flow
they fall onto my chest
to discover what is in my heart
and if it is telling the truth
On the outdoor patio of the tavern, there are about a dozen men singing these songs, eating, drinking and carrying on all night long. In fact, they’re still singing when the first rays of sun light the morning. From the village of Karanos on the island of Crete, I’m Jim Metzner.
Pulse of the Planet is presented by the National Science Foundation.