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The Society of Folk Dance Historians (SFDH) Syrtaki
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BACKGROUND
Information: A recent Greek folk dance family, and a mixture of the slow and fast rhythms of the Vari Hasapiko and Hasaposerviko dances respectively.
Translation: The name Syrtaki comes from the Greek word "syrtos," which means "drag" (or "lead") the dance, a common name for a group of traditional Greek dances of so-called "dragging" style, as opposed to "pidikhtos," a hopping or leaping style. Despite that, Syrtaki is a combination of either a slow hasapiko and fast hasapiko, or a slow hasapiko, hasaposerviko, and fast hasapiko.
Pronunciation: seer-TAH-kee
Other name: Sirtaki
Region: Greece
REFERENCES
- Georgos Koutsourelis played on laouto a dance called Armenohorianos Syrtos from Crete on the phonograph record Mousikos Syllogos Xanion: "O Xarxalis," Enthymata apo ti mousiki paradosi tis Kritis, 1920-1955, Panivar, PA40238.
- Theodorakis used the melody for Syrtaki, a dance choreographed for the movie "Zorba the Greek," based on the novel by Kazantzakis.
- Syrtaki became a Hasapiko and gained enduring popularity among ethnic Greek and international folk dancers, none of whom knew the origin of the dance.
DOCUMENTS
- Greece, a country.
- Zorba's Dance, an article.
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