Year 10 - Music
Understanding Greek folk music
Eastern Mediterranean and Middle Eastern music
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
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Lesson Summary
You will learn to identify key instruments in Greek folk music and perform the basic 7/8 rhythms of 'Thalassaki Mou'.
Key Notes
- Greek folk music includes both folk songs and music for dance.
- It uses a mix of common Western instruments and traditional Greek instruments, including the bouzouki and defi.
- Much Greek folk music uses irregular time signatures such as 5/8 and 7/8.
- Kalamatianó is a type of Greek folk dance which is based in 7/8.
- Usually 7/8 is counted as a 3-2-2. 5/8 is counted as 3-2.
Vocabulary To Learn
- bouzouki: a traditional Greek stringed instrument
- defi: a type of tambourine, a small hand drum with bangles
- irregular time signature: a time signature in which the number of beats cannot be divided by two or three (e.g. 5, 7, 11)
- kalamatianó: a type of Greek folk dance which is based in 7/8 metre
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Music for dance must have a regular pulse (in 2, 3 or 4).
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Explain the lesson in two key points.
Greek folk music includes both folk songs and music for dance. It uses a mix of common Western instruments and traditional Greek instruments, including the bouzouki and defi.
2. What does this key word mean in this lesson? 'bouzouki'
a traditional Greek stringed instrument.
3. Correct this common mistake.
Mistake: Music for dance must have a regular pulse (in 2, 3 or 4). Correction: While most Western dance music has a regular time signature, in other parts of the world it is common to dance to music with irregular time signatures, such as 5/8 and 7/8.
More Lessons In This Unit
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