Concert by Rebetiki Istoria

• Event Date: Tuesday, November 14, 2017
• Time: 7:00 pm (CST)
• Location: Knight Auditorium, Spurlock Museum, 600 S. Gregory St., Urbana, IL
• Cost: Free Admission

• Performance

Part of the Gateways to World Music Series

Based in Athens, Greece, Rebetiki Istoria, is the leading Greek traditional music group specializing in early-style rebetika, one of the oldest genres of Greek urban popular song often referred to as “the blues of Greece.” For 35 years, Rebetiki Istoria has led the rebetiko revival, producing authentic rebetika performances reminiscent of the earliest rebetika stars and maintaining an extraordinary repertoire including popular rebetika songs and little-known gems sung by male and female vocalists, accompanied by violin, guitar and bouzoukis. Pavlos Vassiliou, the lead singer and founder of Rebetiki Istoria, maintains the ensemble’s broad repertoire, has mastered the complex art of amanes ("vocal improvisation"), and draws influence from his training as a chanter in the Greek Orthodox Church. In 2013, Vassiliou was awarded the King-Chavez-Parks Visiting Professorship by the University of Michigan for his contribution to the diversity of social and cultural perspectives in Greece and abroad.

This Robert E. Brown Center for World Music event is co-sponsored by the European Union Center, Center for Global Studies, Spurlock Museum, and Program in Modern Greek Studies. Sponsorship from the European Union Center and by the Center for Global Studies is provided through support from the U.S. Department of Education's Title VI NRC Program.