several important documentaries about Cretan music, such as those for Greek public television hosted by Domna Samiou. By the 1980s, some professional musicians were recording modern arrangements of Cretan music involving instruments such as the steel-string acoustic guitar, and more chordal accompaniments involving major, minor, and diminished harmonies. By the 1990s, there were numerous local radio and television shows dedicated to Cretan music. Influence and contemporary fusions Some contemporary musicians in Crete, including Ross Daly, have experimented with new kinds of music that have been heavily influenced by Cretan traditional music. Ethnomusicologist Kevin Dawe has noted that, "Recent fusions of Cretan/Greek, Turkish and various other oriental musics and musical instruments in both popular and traditional musics present a challenge to established notions of musical performance practice and musical identity." Dances Ntames Pentozali (siganos & grigoros) Pidikhtos (Anogeianos & Ethianos) Sousta (Rethemniotiki) Syrtos, like in the music of mainland Greece is a dance in 4/4 time. On Crete this dance is typically accompanied by an up tempo Cretan lyra melody Trizalis Angaliastos Maleviziotis Sociology Numerous scholars have noted that modern Cretan music has been a predominantly male domain and, in particular, serves as a site for performing one's "manhood." Several scholars have examined the history and politics surrounding the violin versus the lyra as the primary musical instrument identified with the island and employed in its music. Cretan musicians Some of the earliest popular music stars from Crete were Andreas Rodinos, Yiannis Bernidakis, Stelios Koutsourelis, Stelios Foustalieris, Efstratios Kalogeridis, Kostas Papadakis, Michalis Kounelis, Kostas Mountakis, Leonidas Klados and Thanassis Skordalos. Later, in the 1960s, musicians like Nikos Xylouris (Psaronikos) and Yannis Markopoulos combined Cretan folk music with classical techniques. For the above choices, Nikos Xylouris received the negative criticism of conservative fans of the Cretan music but he remained popular, as did similarly styled performers like Charalambos Garganourakis and Vasilis Skoulas. Nowadays, prominent performers include Antonis Xylouris (Psarantonis), Giorgos Xylouris (Psarogiorgis), Ross Daly, Loudovikos ton Anogeion, Stelios Petrakis, Vasilis Stavrakakis, the group Chainides, Zacharias Spyridakis, Michalis Stavrakakis, Mitsos Stavrakakis, Michalis Kontaxakis, Dimitrios Vakakis, Giorgos Skordalos, Georgios Tsantakis, Michalis Tzouganakis, Elias Horeftakis, Giannis Haroulis, and Giorgis Pantermakis. And of course the legendary man with the double mustache, Nikolas Gonianakis. Nikos Stavrakakis See also Mantinada Music of Greece Cretan Greek Cretan Lyra References External Links Cretan Music Cretan Dance Cretan Music and Dance ITE Research Database Rethemnos Lyra Tradition (in Greek) Violin Tradition