Pontic song: Aural testimonies of trying times thegreekvibe: The rugged cliffs along the desolate coastline of the Back Sea and the cavernous gorges of Pontus have nurtured a music so powerful and proud that only one who has travelled to these weathered lands or is a Pontic Greek can grasp the deeply-rooted history behind the Learn more…
Holy Friday: The Day the Greek Orthodox Mourn
thegreekvibe: Today, Holy Friday, is a day of loss and sorrow. A death knell echoes throughout Greece, from its remote villages to its buzzing cities. Flags are at half mast, and in the days of old, black cloths were hung from windows and balconies. On this day no activities are allowed. And in many remote Learn more…
Kassiani: A fallen woman or a poet?
thegreekvibe: Secular and sacred unite during Great and Holy Week leading up to the Resurrection of Christ (“Anastasi”) and Easter Sunday. In this week, Orthodox across the globe flock to their parishes to partake in the centuries-old religious rituals that make Easter the most celebrated and venerated holiday of the year. Hymns and ecclesiastical (church) Learn more…
Greek Carols for the New Year — The Kalanta Tradition
thegreekvibe: Whether it’s the rosy-cheeked hair-cropped kiddies of yesteryear clutching traditional Greek instruments or the modern-era iPhone-armed youngsters of today donning the latest Gap wear, Greek children continue to this day – albeit several time-induced changes – to sing the carols, some dating to Byzantine times, on New Year’s Eve. As with all traditions Learn more…
‘Kalanta’: A Greek Christmas carol
thegreekvibe: “Hionia sto kabanario, pou Christougenna simainoun…” (Snow on the bell tower mark the coming of Christmas)… Though our mother was anything but religious, on Christmas Eve morning in a usually very snowy Chicago suburb she would sing to us this carol. She still insists that children should have something to believe in and look Learn more…