A Greek Rebetiko song by Tsitsanis, brings us some decennia back in time, but stays also very contemporary.
Greeks, whenever they were facing difficulties, which is still something happening very often, have found a way to overcome and even to celebrate!
The following Rebetiko song,  by known composer Vassilis Tsitsanis, is an example of how Greeks deal with difficulties!

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Since 2005 Omilo welcomes every summer many students from all over the world on the island of Syros.
Our students have three things in common: they love Greek culture, they want to learn the Greek language and they want to explore the « real Greece ».
For that reason, we chose to organize our summer courses in Syros.  

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The most well known Greek New Year Song, is sang on December 31st!
Children will ring your doorbell early in the morning, and sing the New Year Carol – ta kalanta 

Of course, you can hear this New Year song also on the radio, and  maybe, you can also try to sing it yourself and impress your Greek friends ;-).

A song to say good bey to the “old year” and welcome the “new year”!

Although there are many variations and different songs, there is one song you will hear all over Greece.
Listen to the video, and read the text in Greek and English. Enjoy

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Would you like to listen to a Greek Christmas carol, and/or sing along?
On December 24th, if you are in Greece, do not be surprised when children ring your doorbell early in the morning!

Τhe children go from house to house, singing about the birth of Jesus Christ, while holding their small metal triangles.  Open them the door; it is believed to bring good luck into your home. And do not forget to give them some coins!

Θα θέλατε να ακούσετε τα ελληνικά χριστουγεννιάτικα κάλαντα ή να τα τραγουδήσετε κι εσείς μαζί; Στις 24 Δεκεμβρίου, αν είστε στην Ελλάδα, μην ξαφνιαστείτε όταν νωρίς το πρωί τα παιδιά χτυπήσουν το κουδούνι της πόρτας σας! Τα παιδιά πηγαίνουν από σπίτι σε σπίτι και τραγουδάνε για τη γέννηση του Ιησού Χριστού, κρατώντας τα μικρά μεταλλικά τους τρίγωνα. Ανοίξτε τους την πόρτα. Θεωρείται πως φέρνουν τύχη στο σπίτι. Και μην ξεχάσετε να τους δώσετε μερικά κέρματα! 

 

If you are not in Greece, but you would like to hear it,  teacher Eva will sing it for you!
That way,  you can listen to it as many times as you want 🙂
But before you sing along,  let’s do a small Greek listening exercise first!

Listen to the song on the video, and fill out the missing words in the exercise, which you can find under the video!

H δασκάλα η Εύα, θα τραγουδήσει για εσάς ώστε να μπορέσετε να ακούσετε τα κάλαντα όσες φορές θέλετε!  

Μπορείτε να τραγουδήσετε μαζί με την Εύα αλλά ας κάνουμε μία μικρή ακουστική άσκηση πρώτα! 
Ακούστε το τραγούδι στο βίντεο και συμπληρώστε τις λέξεις που λείπουν στην άσκηση που βρίσκεται κάτω από το βίντεο!

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Do you like Greek music?  Σας αρέσει η ελληνική μουσική;

Maybe this is not an easy question to answer, since there are so many different genres of Greek songs and music.
Ίσως να μην είναι τόσο εύκολο να απαντήσετε σε αυτή την ερώτηση, αφού υπάρχουν πολλά είδη ελληνικής μουσικής.

You might like one particular genre, like Rembetiko, Pop, Rock, but maybe not another genre like Laika, Entechna…?

So a better question might be;
Which genre of Greek Music do you like? Or, do you like Greek entechna songs ?
But  with those questions,  many non-Greeks will not be able to answer them, since they do not know the names or the difference between the various musical genres, neither the time-period that particular music was created in Greece.
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Manos Eleftheriou , is a famous Greek author and songwriter. He  wrote poems as well as short stories.
Since he was born and raised on the island of Syros (1938-2018), the Omilo students often hear his name while attending a course on the island.
Manos Eleftheriou loved Syros and edited books about his island, specifically about Markos Vamvakaris and Syros society, about theater in Ermoupolis in the 20th century, and about Ermoupolis in Greek literature.


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Greek songs which also became international hits, are more than you might think! However, few people today realize that some classic songs were actually written by Greek composers,
When you regularly visit, you definitely have understood that  music  plays a very important role in the life of Greeks. In joy and sorrow, Greeks sing. And the truth is that they have the opportunity to choose among several categories of songs, in order to express every time their feelings: there are plenty of folk songs, rebetika, laika, entexna  as well as rock and pop songs.


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11 Greek Proverbs in 1 Song will not help you only to memorize Greek proverbs, but also learn a lot about the Greek language and culture. The song we present you today is called “Proverbs”. It was written in 1987 by Melina Tanagri. So with this song, you will have “killed two birds with one stone” (m’ énan sbáro dyó trigónia), as Greeks say.

 

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Did you ever celebrate Greek Christmas and New Year in Greece?  Apart from other Christmas traditions, you will hear typical Greek carols all over the country: the “kalanta”. Greece is rich in music and depending on the geographical regions, there are different Christmas and New Year songs, using different instruments and rhythms.
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A Greek song by Machairitsas is also ideal to learn Greek vocabulary.
Let’s enjoy beautiful Greek music,  while improving your Greek.
The song  “What do I ask for?” “Τι ζητάω;”, is a very known song, every Greek can sing along..
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