RETSINA COLA « Rebetiko » (Greece)
Greek soul and oriental spices

This young quartet presents the essence of rebetiko as it continues to thrive, more than a century after its emergence.
The rebetiko genre originated within the community of Greeks exiled from Asia Minor following the fall of the Ottoman Empire. As music knows no borders, these exiles brought back to their homeland instruments, rhythms and melodies from the eastern Mediterranean, which blended with the local music.
Rebetiko first took root in working-class neighbourhoods, before winning over the more affluent classes by the end of the Second World War. Its repertoire experienced a significant boom in the 1930s with the emergence of the ‘underground’ cabaret singer Róza Eskenázy (c.1890–1980), whose recordings made her the first major star of the Greek music scene.
The themes explored are reminiscent of those in tango and fado: thwarted love, relationships gone wrong, melancholy and nostalgia. There are also more social themes such as poverty, crime, drugs and the demands of the working class, which earned rebetiko a negative reputation among the bourgeoisie before it won over the entire population.
The members of Retsina Cola continue to keep this genre alive in cafés, tavernas and other venues across mainland Greece and the islands, where they take up residence for the summer season.

Line-up :
Alexios Koutsourelis (bouzouki & vocals)
Giorgos Goudousakis (guitar & vocals)
Melina Vasiliki Paraskevopoulou (percussion & vocals)
Ioannis Christakopoulos (accordion & vocals)

Schedule (subject to change) :
Doors : 6pm
Concert : 7pm

Contact (promoter) :
ICAM-L'Olivier / Institut des cultures arabes et méditerranéennes
+41 22 731 84 40
alain.bittar@gmail.com
https://www.icamge.ch