Balkan Beats 22

Balkan Beats

A BIMONTHLY MAGAZINE BY THE VOLUNTEERS OF THE UNITED SOCIETIES OF BALKANS

Greece by Spring

by Isabel Tootill

#22

FREE PRESS

Spring Edition

Editorial

The 22nd Edition Spring has finally arrived, beautiful and full of

Spring Edition

by Isabel Tootill

(page 28-35), Balkan countries traditions and ideas (page 26), music (page 42, From the History of Saxophone, by Ahmet Şahin), events around Thessaloniki (page 21 Thessaloniki Documentary Festival, by Tomás Cunha; and page 23 - 15th Book Fair, by Hande Yetkin), as well as about some news in United Society of Balkans (page 07, Racism Week, by Barış Yüksel).

colours, as always, and Balkan Beats is here to celebrate it! Greece is one of the best places in Europe to be during this season, so we have compiled some tips of where to go and what to do (page 15 - Greece by Spring, by Isabel Tootill) for whoever is interested in travelling through the country during these times. You will also find some curiosities about this time of year (page 19 - Spring Goddesses, by Égle Puodžiūnaitė; and page 13 - Baba Martia’s Day, by Hande Around here, people are constantly coming Yetkin), as well as some interesting facts about and going and, as a result, we have some new Easter traditions in Slovakia (page 10 - Slovak authors who we want to warmly welcome: Égle Puodžiūnaitė, Claudia Cornea, Cristian Lupu, Easter, by Filip Grac).

Ahmet Şahin, Oznur Coşar, and Laura SamuiAs for our usual topics, we welcome you lytė. We truly hope you have a great time readto read more about Greek culture ing the following articles we prepared for you.

Balkan Beats, a part of Balkan Hotspot

Balkan Hotspot is the EVS (European Voluntary changes in the Balkan and Eastern European Service) project of “United Societies of Balkans”, region and under the need for the creation of a a NGO founded in Thessaloniki in 2008 by a team better social environment. of active young people.

Key areas of the organization’s activities concern The Balkans and Eastern Europe are geograph- the defense of human rights, the organization of ical regions with many cultural features which youth exchanges and training courses, which will offer a broad spectrum of actions and youth in- bring young people from Balkans and Europe tovolvement initiatives. The organization was cre- gether, the organization of local educational semated as a response to the pressure of constant inars and multimedia production.

United Societies of Balkans is a Non Governmental Organization, founded in Thessaloniki in 2008, by a team of active young people. The organization was created as a response to the pressure of constant changes in the Balkan and Eastern European region and under the need for the creation of a better social environment. Key areas of the organization’s activities concern the defense of human rights, the organization of youth exchanges and training courses, which will bring young people from Balkans and Europe together, the organization of local educational seminars and multimedia pro- duction(webradio, videos, documentaries).

Main goals of the organization • To promote the values of non formal le- aring,volunteering, active citizenship and democracy for the creation of a better future for European youth.

• To promote human rights, solidarity and respect for diversity.

• To build healthy cooperation bridges between countries of the Balkan area and that of Eastern Europe with the rest of Europe.

• To locate and multiply the special cultural attributes of our societies.

• The break down of prejudices and stereo- types between Balkan countries.

9, Alamanas str., Agios Pavlos, Thessaloniki Tel./Fax: +30 2310 215 629 | www.usbngo.gr

Property of Balkan Beats The United Societies of Balkans, NGO, does not necessarily share the opinions expressed in Balkan Beats. It is illegal to reproduce any part of this publication without referring to the source.

www.balkanhotspot.org

This magazine is distributed free of charge.

UNITED SOCIETIES OF BALKANS, NGO

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Contents

Contents Act React

VOICE TO VOLUNTEERS

04

Voice to volunteer x 2

07

USB NEWS

Week Against Racism with United Societies of Balkans

Spring

SPRING AROUND THE BALKANS

10

Easter Customs In Slovakia

13

Baba Marta’s Day

15

Greece by Spring CURIOSITIES ABOUT SPRING

19

The Goddesses of spring

Thessaloniki PAST AND FUTURE EVENTS

21

Thessaloniki Documentary Festival — Beyond the future

23

The 15th Thessaloniki International Book Fair

Around the Balkans

24

BALKANIZATER

Social and Political

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL ISSUES

36

Political Issues Between Turkey and Greece Based on Recent Statements NEWS AROUND THE WORLD

37

The Facebook Scandal or the Cambridge Analytica Scandal?

MixFix

In between homes

26

1st of March - The celebration of spring

28

39

Headphones: The Next Generation

GREEK CULTURE

Konstantinos Kaváfis The Hellenic

31

Interview with Modal4

35

SCIENCE AND TECH

Smoking in public spaces

41

FOOD

How to enjoy in a typical Greek taverna

42

MIXFIX

Taoism as ‘’The Way’’

44

Horoscope 2018

03

Act React VOICE TO VOLUNTEERS

Voice to volunteer x 2 Sanna Svärd and Valentina Orlando

by Laura Samuilytė

I prepared an interview with two of our ex EVS volunteers. Through this interview, you can learn new things about being an EVS volunteer and about our ex-volunteers experiences.

2 How much time did you spend here?

5 months, September-January

3 What was the biggest culture shock you found?

When I went to Thessaloniki I was talking about

Sanna Svärd

I have been talking with Sanna, a Swedish vol-

unteer from Vasteras that stayed in Thessaloniki for 5 months. Sanna is 20 years old and she is working for the Swedish police, she writes police reports and tips coming from the public. She was born and lives in Vesteras, a city in Sweden.

1

Why did you decide to come to Greece?

I was searching for a lot of Evs projects when

wearing shoes inside a lot. For me that was really strange, since we never use shoes inside in Sweden. As the months passed I noticed a lot of things in the Greek, and other Southern Europe countries, culture that were very strange for me.

We always joked about the north being colder, not only the climate but also the people. In Greece I met much warmer cultures, which surprised me, and I enjoyed it so much! As the time passed, I adapted to the new cultures, and today I cannot remember half of the things I thought was different in the beginning. Evs in Greece changed me!

4 Was it difficult to adapt to a different reality?

That was exactly what I wanted when I decided to move abroad. I wanted to see how other cultures and people are. So, no it wasn’t difficult. It was one goal I had with my trip, and I learned so much about myself and the world because of that.

I decided that I wanted to live abroad for some time. I got accepted in USB, in Thessaloniki, and I thought it was the perfect place for me. I’ve been to Greece many times, and I was very interested in the culture and the people, so this Which event has marked you the project suited me well. I also want to work with most during your stay here? media, preferably as a journalist in the future.

In high school I studied media, which led me to I’m not sure if this is what marked me the most, this area. Since USB offered a media project I but this was the first thing that came to my mind. I ran a race in Greece, which I’d never done applied and went there!

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04

VOICE TO VOLUNTEERS

Act React

before. I also started going to a gym and realized that I actually like to work out and take care of my body. I didn’t think before coming here that I with my boyfriend, and we’re still unpacking our new home. While I’m writing this, I’m in a hotel in cared that much about that.

Malmö, a city in the south of Sweden, and tomorDo you have an example of a “Lost row I’m going to Copenhagen for some days! I wouldn’t say it’s strange that I can communicate in Translation” episode? easily, but sometimes I translate things I want to Hmm, many, of course, but it’s hard to remem- say in my mind to English, because I’m used to ber now. One example is that yes in Greek is ναι that from my time in Greece. Then I realize that (pronounced “ne”), which is a way of saying no I’m home, I can speak Swedish! And most of the time it’s a relief, you can speak your mind in a in Sweden. much better way in your mother tongue.

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7 What was the feeling when you boarded the return flight?

Mixed. I missed my home and the people at home a lot. But when I was at the airport I was mostly thinking about the people I met in Thessaloniki and our goodbye-night the day before.

So I was sad, and feeling anxious about moving back home. Now that some time has passed I still miss the people and my life there, but I see it more as a beautiful memory and not something I want to go back to.

9 What has changed for you these past few months?

I feel like I learned so much in Greece, not only

about media but also about people. It’s hard to explain, but before I was mostly hanging out with friends I’ve had for years, that I already knew everything about, and they knew everything about me. In Greece I got to know so many new people so fast, we lived together and worked together.

I discovered new things about them, and other things every day. I think also my personality How are you doing now in changed there, but it’s hard to put into words on exactly what. One thing that changed in me, in Sweden? Is it not strange that Greece, was that I learned that home, in Sweden, you can communicate so easily isn’t that bad. By being abroad I learned things wherever you go? about my culture, which I think I didn’t realize As I said I’m working, I’m about to finish the before that were a part of my culture. How we training for my new work. I recently moved in behave and how we live, and it’s a good life.

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Act React VOICE TO VOLUNTEERS

3 What was the biggest culture shock you found?

I didn’t have a shock for at cultural level, but for

sure I was impressed with the consequences of the crisis.

4 Was it difficult to adapt to a different reality?

No, it wasn’t difficult for me. I love to travel and to keep in touch with different habits and cultures.

5 Which event has marked you the most during your stay here?

My transformation.

6 Do you have an example of a “Lost in Translation” episode?

I don’t like that movie. For sure, at the beginning Valentina Orlando

I was always saying, literally, I was lost.

I have also been talking with Valentina, an Italian 7

What was the feeling when you boarded the return flight?

volunteer from a region of the south, Puglia, that stayed in Thessaloniki for 10 months. Valentina is 27 years old and she studied cinema and mul- Ah! It was not just one. In that moment you are timedia production. At the moment, she’s work- under a mix of feelings. For what is waiting for ing for the Airbnb community. She was born in you, for what you are leaving...

Trani and at she’s now living in Lisbon, Portugal.

1

Why did you decide to come to Greece?

I was searching for new new opportunities after my masters degree. Greece, at the beginning, was just a chance.

2 How much time did you spend here?

10 months.

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8 How are you doing now in Portugal?

I moved again (laughing). So now I’m struggling with the learning of another language.

9 What has changed for you these past few months?

….a lot. Today, my baggage of knowledge is in a pure crescendo. I conquested something that is impossible to lose: myself in my way.

USB NEWS

Act React

Week Against Racism with United Societies of Balkans

by Barış Yüksel

The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination is observed annually on

21 March. On that day, in 1960, police opened fire and killed 69 people at a peaceful demonstration in Sharpeville, South Africa, against the apartheid “pass laws”.1

Every year around 21 March, the UNITED network coordinates the European-wide Action Week

Against Racism and calls upon the international community to bring an end to racism, discrimination and intolerance.

In this article, I shall try to summarize what has been done during the week against racism organized by United Societies of Balkans.

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International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination 21 March. Retrieved from: http://www.un.org/en/events/racialdiscriminationday/background.shtml

17th March Anti- Racist Picnic at Pasha’s Gardens

The weather was delightfully sunny on this spe-

1 pm when the sun is on the peak, people started cific day. Volunteers cooked extra food for the to show up for the picnic with their food for sharpeople who may want to join the picnic. Around ing with the people.

We were happy to host many guests

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Act React USB NEWS

Our youngest guests had the most fun :)

We had slight worries about the events a volun- In

couple hours, people from different counteers since it was the first event of the week and tries were having conversation with each other, we had desire to start everything great from the sharing their food; people were on slacklines, beginning. The result was beyond my expectations. playing ball games from 5 years old to adults.

20th March Tandem at Bord De L’eauInternational Francophonie Day edition

On this day, we have decided to make a quiz re-

lated to International Francophonie Day which people can compete each other in such an international environment while they were having fun.

We warmly welcomed everybody

Our beloved French volunteer is leading the quiz.

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Our administration team also was with us at that night!

USB NEWS

Act React

24th of March Movie Night at Cultural Center

The screening of Selma(2014) directed by Ava DuVernay was our last specific event for the week against racism. We would like to thank to Babylonia Cultural Center for their warm and kind welcoming us!

The movie was focused on the significant events

in Alabama state of United States where discriminatory policies were held against blacks even though it was illegal.

The movie was quite touch and informative for us. We highly recommend it to you to watch it if you still did not!

In addition to all of our events, everyday we visit-

ed different schools for workshops to talk about racism in our own languages which gives us to interact with locals in such a special way for us.

Our Turkish volunteer Esra in Turkish workshop

Courtesy of Eglė Puodžiūnaitė

Our coordinator and intern after Italian workshop

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Spring SPRING AROUND THE BALKANS

Easter Customs In Slovakia

by Filip Grác

Easter is the most significant Christian holiday. Even though most of the Christian commu-

nity around the globe predominantly celebrates the Easter in connection with the resurrection of Jesus Christ, there could be still found some parts in the world, where people still celebrate this holiday to commemorate the natural cycles and rebirth. One of such places is also the country of Slovakia, where people still preserve plenty of unique customs for the celebration of fertility and new natural cycles triggered by spring.

Pre-Christian Eastern customs preserved in Slovakia

In the centre of these pre-Christian traditions

Easter Eggs

Decorated Easter eggs

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© Samuel Kubani

Source: www.kraslice.com

is the decoration of Easter eggs - the most wide-spread pagan symbols of spring and Easter, which could be found all around Europe. In Slovakia and Moravia region of Czech Republic, these Easter eggs symbols are called “kraslice,” and they usually manifested by painted, dyed, or otherwise decorated blown eggs. This custom could be found with multiple variations that primarily change only by the techniques and materials with which eggs are usually decorated.

SPRING AROUND THE BALKANS

Spring

Oblievačka And Šibačka

Decoration techniques often vary even from Apart from the decoration of the Easter eggs,

village to village, which makes it a very challenging task to describe this phenomenon in its all entirety. Regionally unique egg decorations differ on all the imaginable levels – from the use of different types of colour, patterns and materials. When it comes to the celebration of rebirth and new natural cycle, inspiration seems to be unlimited.

which could be found also in other cultural traditions around Europe, there are also two very distinct Easter-connected customs that could be found exclusively in Slovakia and parts of Moravia in the Czech Republic. These customs are called “oblievačka” (water pouring) and “šibačka” (whipping) and their unique character always triggers the fascination and attention of foreign visitors.

Among unique techniques, we can find deco- Both of them are typical for Easter Monday, rating by the use of coloured beeswax, straw or copper wire. When it comes to these delicate techniques, decoration of Easter eggs resembles more an artistic craft than to a mare folk tradition.

Traditional Slovak “oblievačka” (water pouring)

and they could be found in numerous variations all around the Slovakia and parts of Moravia. On this day, men visit their female relatives and friends and pour water on them or spray them with perfume and whip them gen-

© Samuel Kubani

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Spring SPRING AROUND THE BALKANS

Traditional Slovak “šibačka” (whipping)

© Samuel Kubani

tly with special whips made of braided willow triggered by spring. Water-pouring and whipping rods. According to tradition, pouring water on was primarily used by men to celebrate and prewomen will guarantee their beauty and good serve the vitality and fertility of young ladies. health throughout the year.

Recently oblievacka and šibačka have not been In regions around Eastern part of Slovakia as intense as they used to be in the past deoblievacka (water pouring) is much more typical, cades. However, in some villages you may still while in the Western part of the country the cus- see young men, sometimes riding on the horses tom šibačka is more prevalent and water pour- or dressed in traditional folk costumes, which ing appears in here only occasionally. Apart from come with rattles and braided whips decorated this basic distinction, there could be still found with colourful ribbons. They may take females regions, in which each of these customs is used out of the houses and douse them with a bucket or buckets filled with cold water.1 side by side during Easter time.

On the other hand, because of their specific After oblievacka and šibačka, women reward character and pre-Christian origin, both of these customs are very difficult to explain to people outside of the central European cultural region/ context without confusion and misunderstanding. Their primary function in the past was to celebrate the rebirth, fertility and new natural cycles

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men with sweets, fruit, money, or painted Easter eggs. While it is not required to give Easter eggs to visiting males on Easter Monday, only a few men will leave the house without a drink or small refreshment.

1 SOURCE: http://www.slovakiasite.com/holidays-customs2.php

SPRING AROUND THE BALKANS

Baba Marta’s Day

Spring

by Hande Yetkin

Arrival of spring is celebrated in many different ways all around the world. Therefore, there

is only one wish that doesn’t change: “Take the ugliness of the Winter away and bring forth the beauty of Spring.”

he first day of March is one of the best days to

visit magnificent Bulgaria. All streets are covered with small tokens made from red and white woollen threads; from 7 to 77 everyone put an accessory on their dresses and you may easily see that their wrists are full of red and white bracelets which are called as Martenitsas. The name symbolises the wakening of the earth for a new life as well as the cult to the sun. White colour represents the human nature and the strength; the red colour is the sign of health and women nature.

It is also considered as the sign of blood and birth.

is an angry old lady who rapidly changes her mood from worst to best and back again. She is a well-known legend in Bulgaria. According to the beliefs, spring only starts when she arrives.

Her dual image of both merry and mischievous, of simultaneously approving and denying character, represents the woman as the beginning of life as well as the devastating elemental beginning at large.

March is considered as the month of giving

birth to summer and fruitfulness, and it is the only ‘female’ month of the year. The first day of According to tradition Marta, which is the fe- March is the name day of everyone named Marmale variation of the word ‘March’ in Bulgarian, tha, Martin, Martina.

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Spring SPRING AROUND THE BALKANS

Stories From All Around The World

It is a fact that almost every tradition has its source from the past. Here comes our first story about Baba Marta. Once upon a time in winter time, Bulgarian men went to war. People ask for soldiers to put a white cloth on one of a bird’s foot if they win. Bulgarian soldiers won the battle, and they put a white cloth on a bird’s foot with full of blood sot hat people understood that they were successful, but a lot of people died.

By

another ancient tradition that is about a Bulgarian khan lived in the 7th century. He had five sons and a daughter. One day, Kubrat’s five sons went hunting and left their sister Houba along. When they reached the river Danube, they encountered a silver stag. They followed the stag when it crossed the river and were led to a ford. At some point, they were visited by a bird that brought them bad news. Their father Kahn Kubrat, the founder of Great Bulgaria, was said to be on his deathbed and he wanted to see his sons beside him. The sons went back home to be with Khan in his last moments. Soon after their father’s death, the Khazars invaded their lands. The Khazar’s Khan, Ashiba, succeeded in conquering the capital Ababa. Khan Ashiba had managed to take Houba, Kubrat’s daughter. To give her brothers a chance for freedom, she tried to kill herself. However, she failed. Her brothers remembered their father’s wish and kept their vows: Bayan stayed with Houba and recognised the rule of the Khazars. Kotrag went north, to the River Volga, while Asparoukh, Kuber and Altsek went south to search for a land free of oppressors. Before they left, the brothers had secretly arranged with Houba to send her a coded message whenever they were able to find free land. Then Asparoukh sent word, which he attached with a golden thread to a falcon’s leg. Bayan, who had stayed with Houba decided it was time to escape; however, they were spotted and hunted. In an at-

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tempt to send a message to her brothers, Houba tied a white thread to the falcon’s leg. As she was setting the bird free, the moment the Falcon was about to take off, an enemy arrow hit her brother Bayan, and the spray of his blood stained the white thread red. But the gods were smiling on them and brother and sister managed to reach Asparoukh’s newfoundland. Asparoukh welcomed his mortally wounded brother and sister and tore up pieces of white-and-red thread with which he then adorned his soldiers.According to the beliefs, Baba Marta doesn’t like elderly women. On the first day of March, the oldest woman in the house must clean the house and hang a red cloth out thoroughly before the sun rises so that she can make Baba Marta pleasant and be ready for welcoming the spring. While young people must go out to be seen and beloved by Baba Marta, old people must stay at home to not too pissed of Baba Marta.

Tradition

There are various ways of celebrating that day

in different regions of Bulgaria. On the first day of March, the housewives used to hang out red aprons, belts, rugs or twisted threads in front of their houses as protection against illnesses and poverty. When Baba Martha, symbolising the spring month of March, would see them she would start laughing, and that way make the sunshine brightly again.

Another

tradition says that everyone has to choose a day for themselves between the first and twenty-second of March and they have to forecast the weather. If the weather is really sunny, that means this person will have a pleasant and successful year. If it is the opposite, this person will have some difficulties. Also, old people guess migratory birds. Baba Marta is honoured on first, ninth and twenty-fifth of March since those are the holy days.

SPRING AROUND THE BALKANS

Spring

Greece by Spring Where to go and what to see

by Isabel Tootill

It is well known that Greece is one of the most touristic countries of Europe due to its beautiful sites and warm weather. In the crossroad between three continents, this country is surrounded by the Ionian, Aegean and Libyan Seas, all of which bring a sense of freshness and good vibes to travellers, residents and visitors. Spring is one of the best seasons to travel and visit around… the weather is mild and pleasant, and the colours are beautiful. In this country of historical richness and natural beauty, which are the best places to visit during these months?

What to do?

Easter at midnight in Athens

Spring is the time of year when the weather

starts to invite you out and nearly makes you feel guilty if you stay inside. Greece, as a hot southern country, is perfect during this season, even more than in the summer, due to its warm temperatures and not so crowded roads and beaches.

Whoever has some time off during the months of April, June or July is very fortunate and should consider spending it in this marvellous country.

Let’s have a look at some places and activities Athens that are especially adequate to this season.

Orthodox Easter – where to go and what to do?

Most may know that one of the main differences between Catholic Church and Orthodox Church is the calendar used. The first one, based on the Gregorian calendar, differs slightly from the second one, based on the Julian calendar. This way, Easter in Greece, where most churches are Orthodox, is celebrated slightly later than in the rest of Europe. This year, 2018, it will be celebrated on the 8th of April. Some practices are common to the whole country, such as eating roasted lamb and dyeing Easter eggs. But other traditions are singular to each city, village or island.

Source: http://www.greecetravel.com/easter/

Athens, as the capital city of Greece, has big fes-

tivities during Easter time, celebrated by religious people and some non-religious satisfying their curiosity. In this city, some of the most beautiful and interesting Greek churches are placed. The traditional festivities start on Holy Tuesday with the Haunting “Hymn of Kassiani”, sung once a year in places like the Church of Agios Nikolaos, for example. On Good Friday there is a candlelit procession throughout the streets of Athens, held by the Church of Agios Georgios, in Karytsi Square. Also on this day, the ritual of dressing the tomb of Christ (epitaph) with flowers is put into motion. The next day, Holy Saturday, is the day to mourn the death o Christ. Just before midnight, the lights of the city go out and soon you

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Spring SPRING AROUND THE BALKANS

can see lit up candles being passed from one person to another. This is a beautiful tradition to be seen 277 meters above from the Athens, on the highest point of Lycabettus Hill. Finally, on Easter Sunday, the place to be is the old city of Plaka. Here, the tavernas will be full of delicious food and life with live music and roasted lamb and other meats.

Spetses and Hydra

These two islands are a fascinating place to be

during Easter time due to its increasing competition, every year. The first island, Spetses, holds four processions – Epitaph Processions –, one for each of the main churches, which converge on the main square on the end of Good Friday.

This event culminates with the lifting of the decorated bier as high as possible, as a way to earn a blessing from the Skies. In the second Island, Hydra, there is also one Epitaph Procession, ending in the entering of the sea, as a way to bless waters and boats. This is an emotional spectacle, bringing people from all around the world, every year.

Corfu

This island is well known for its particular way

of celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ: throwing clay pitchers out of windows and balconies, in the historic centre, while shouting “Christ is risen”. All kinds of ceramics are thrown, from pots and plates to giant jars. Also, music played by the island’s musical bands can be heard all throughout town. In Corfu, the Epitaph Procession holds place on Saturday morning, instead of on Good Friday. During this procession, the remains of St. Spyridon, Corfu’s Saint, are also carried through town.

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Outdoor sports

Spring is time to be outside, and Greece is per-

fect for it. For sports lovers, this time is excellent for outdoor sports and activities, since that, during the Summer months, the temperatures may get too high for this kind of hobby. Trekking and hiking are the most popular activities during this time of year. Also, water sports, as well as radical sports, are among the most favourite during this season.

Water sports

Being surrounded by three different seas,

Greece is naturally

a country of water, beaches and, consequently, water sports.

The good weather calls water sports lovers to start their adventures on and under water. From kitesurf to diving, this country offers countless opportunities for water enthusiasts, presenting them with magical sites and exhilarating sensations. Kitesurfing and Windsurfing are great in the islands, such as Crete, Rhodes, Karpathos, Kos, Limnos, Samos and Levos.

As for water skiing and wakeboarding, the Athenian Riviera is the best place to do it, alongside Paros, Mykonos, Rhodes, Lefkas, Halkida and Crete. For those who enjoy scuba diving as a way to discover the wonders deep down under water, they can find it amazing in places like Santorini, Corfu, Lefkas and Zakynthos.

SPRING AROUND THE BALKANS

Spring

Mountain climbing and trekking

to mind when this topic is thought of. But many other places have great trekking facilities, such Being a mountainous country, Greece is an fan- as Meteora, with its high pillars; the Pelion fortastic place for trekking and climbing. For those ests, with beautiful paths; and various islands, who like this kind of activity, the Spring is the best with their donkey trails. time to do it – the weather is pleasant enough to invite you outside, but not hot enough to make Islands – which are the best in spring you give up after the first 100 meters. Leaving the sea and water behind, these sports will bring As it has been mentioned in this article, Greece you to a different side of Greece, showing you is a place of numerous islands, each of them with its green and brown beauty – from breathtaking an unequal beauty. In Springtime, they bloom views from high cliffs to lakes, rivers and forests. with flowers, offering the most beautiful views For rock climbers, the must go destination is and sites of the country. Let’s take a ride through Kalymnos, being this one of the top ten sites. As the best islands to go to during this season: for hiking, Crete is

Naxos

Spring is the time to have a feeling of what is the home to the longest canyon in Europe, being this a priority for hikers. Moreover, for bike lovers, they have good mountain routes in Parnitha, Lithoro, Samothraki, Kissavos and Karpenisi. Last but not least, trekking is the most pursued mountain sport when in Greece. The Olympus Mountain is, for obvious reasons, the first place that comes

real day to day life in Naxos. Being full of tourists during Summer, it is more calm and pleasant during Springtime. Also, the more mild weather gives you the chance to explore, in a more comfortable way, up and down the narrow roads of the island. Likewise, the amazing beaches of Naxos are more accessible to discover if they are less crowded, with their soft sand and crystal water.

Climbing Mount Olympus © Mafalda Tenazinha

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Santorini

This is, no doubt, the most sought Greek island by tourists. During Spring season, the amazing caldera becomes exceptionally vivid with its colours, making the margins of the trekking paths very pleasant to walk through. Comparing to Summer, Santorini during Spring is much more silent and calm, due to less tourism. This way, this island is a great destination for a Spring break for those who love beautiful sites, nature and fresh air.

Painting of Santorini by Spring

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Crete

Crete is the biggest and most populous island

in the country. This way, it attracts thousands of tourists every year. The activities offered, as well as its natural beauty, make this one of the best places to visit during this season. During April, May and June, Crete’s stunning beaches are empty, being an incredible attraction for any water lover. The temperatures are also very welcoming for anyone who enjoys the sun. Some even say that this island, during Springtime, is absolute paradise.

Source: http://keywordsuggest.org/gallery/701175.html

CURIOSITIES ABOUT SPRING

Spring

The Goddesses of spring

by Eglé Puodžiūnaitė

Media, newspapers, economy, contacts, Facebook, deadline, sale, bus timetables, etc.

these words have become a new mantra of everyday life. Contemporary lifestyle human beings turned into the Muppets who worship meaningless idols. I invite you to dive deep into the Lithuanian and Greek cultures and remember what kind of gods our forefathers used to reverence.

Žemyna [origin – earth, mainland] is one of According to the myth, her mother suffered

the primary goddesses in Lithuania’s pagan religion. She brings life and beauty, she nourishes the earth and makes plants go blossoming, she provides light and warmth, and her ambience is animals’ sanctuary. Also, Žemyna has the power to take away life. The first time her name was mentioned was in the XVI century, in folk stories. In numerous narratives, Žemyna is described as the symbol of anthropomorphic [having a human form] goddess, mother earth. Žemyna was married to Perkūnas, the god of thunder. A ritual to honour the goddess and her generous prayers was for farmers to pour out some beer or slice of bread on the ground.

They believed that food which was taken from the earth has to be returned. After the baptism of Lithuania, in 1387, the image and other attributes of goddess Žemyna were adapted to Virgin Mary’s image.

so much that Hade allowed Persephone to come back home, to Olympus, after six months. Here comes the metaphor about seasons: during Winter and Autumn she lives in

Persephone [Περσεφόνη; also called Kore –

the maiden] is the Greek goddess of Spring, also known as underworld queen. The story says that because of her unique beauty, Persephone was attracted by many men’s eyes and her parents, Zeus and Demeter, decided to keep the young goddess away from outside’s dangers. Finally, Hade, the middle age god, fell in love with Persephone and kidnapped her in order to marry her wedding.

Eglė Puodžiūnaitė,“Chloris with flowers” 2017 © Eglé Puodžiūnaitė

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Spring CURIOSITIES ABOUT SPRING

the underworld, and during Spring and Summer, she lives underground and brings fertility, fruitfulness and blossoming. Persephone is described as a dual goddess who brings not only life, but also death to earth.

The resemblance between Persephone and Že-

myna is that both, as female goddesses bring image and necessity of being mother earth. By the way, in many Lithuanian folk legends, Žemyna is defined with different names. This investigation leads me to “La Primavera” [which means The Spring], a painting made by the Italian painter Sandro Bottichelli, in 1482. “La Primavera” is one of the most controversial paintings in art history and has many historical interpretations. The picture is based on the mythological story made in early Renaissance.

The name of this period of time in European history was invented by French, having the word the meaning of ‘rebirth’. The main character in

Sandro Botticelli, “La Primavera” 1482

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the painting centre is Roman goddess Venus, depicted as the perfect symbol of woman. But the most interesting part is the three figures on the right side of the painting. Zephyros, the god of the west wind who has intentions to seduce the Greek nymph Chloris [Χλωρίς] and metamorphose into a goddess. After the wedding, Chloris becomes the powerful Roman goddess Flora of flowers of the Spring and controls seasons and grants earth with fertility. Is this a strange coincidence or Botticelli made it on purpose, mixing a few cultures in one bowl?

Every time I look at the “La Primavera” I also imagine Žemyna or Persephone standing next to Zephyrus, and I question myself: do we have all the same stories in our culture? Perhaps, this is the same story, with the same characters and, the fact that history influenced to call the same gods by different names, makes our nations and cultures unique.

Source: http://www.italianrenaissance.org/a-closer-look-botticellis-primavera/

PAST AND FUTURE EVENTS

Thessaloniki

Thessaloniki Documentary Festival — Beyond the future A chronicle about the 20th edition of TDF

by Tomás Cunha

March in Thessaloniki is synonymous with the second wave of cinema in the city. This

time, the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival. The city received from 2 to 11 of March, on more than 6 venues, dozens of films that challenge the boundaries of documentary and open new doors for what is to come.

The

20th edition of the Thessaloniki Documentary Festival presented approximately 180 features and 48 short documentary films by directors from all over the world, as well as a parallel events program. The film screenings took place at the Olympion complex, as well as at the Tonia Marketaki, Frida Liappa, Stavros Tornes and John Cassavetes theatres located at the city’s Port. This year, TDF hosted screenings in two additional venues situated in two Thessaloniki Municipalities: Pavlos Melas and Kalamaria. The 20th TDF presented 8 world, 4 international and 8 European premieres in its program, among them THE ARTIST & THE PERVERT by Beatrice Behn and Rene Gebhardt, SOUNDS OF KIBERA by Luis Lanchares, A VISIT TO JUNE LEAF’S STUDIO MY FIRST FILM by Brigid Kennison and Across HER BODY by Zacharias Mavroidis.

The Festival had different Jury groups for the International Competition section, which presents 10 films of over 50’ minutes that compete for the Golden Alexander and the Special Jury Award. There was also an international FIPRESCI (International Federation of Film Critics) jury who handed out one award to a film of the International Competition section and one award to a Greek film participating in the International Program segments of the 20th TDF. Visage Villages by Agnès Varda & JR opened

the Festival and it told us a story in which Agnès Varda and JR embark on an unpredictable, full of good feelings journey throughout the French countryside, sharing on camera their friendship and the engaging stories of the people who meet on the way.

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Thessaloniki PAST AND FUTURE EVENTS

Visage Villages by Agnès Varda & JR

On the sidebar events, in Celebration of the 20th

anniversary of TDF, the Festival revisited two films that were screened during its inaugural event 20 years ago. The films were In My Father’s House by Fatima Jebli Ouazzani from 1997, about the status of women in Morocco’s society; and Nightflowers by Nikos Grammatikos, from 1998, about the education of visually impaired children. In the same section, Festival had an all night marathon of music documentaries called 20 Years Greatest Hits. They relate that one of the best memories from the 1st Thessaloniki Documentary Festival was the night in which the city stayed up all night at the Olympion theatre, watching music documentaries. Twenty years later, the Festival did exactly the same thing, watching documentaries about bands and musicians that defined the 90s, the decade which gave birth to the Festival. Among them were exhibited documentaries about Kurt Cobain, George Michael, Pulp, Stephin Merrit and the Magnetic

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© Unknown

Fields, as well as the influential Greek musician Yiannis Angelakas. In the sidebar events there was also a presentation called Greek Chronicle Project: Footage Archive. The Greek Chronicle Project is an interactive web-documentary that chronicles the Greek crisis and the refugee crisis in Greece, filmed between 2011–2016 by Zafeiris Haitidis.

The closing ceremony had place on the last day

of the festival and presented us À propos de Nice

by Jean Vigo from 1930. Jean Vigo’s iconic silent documentary had been screened with live original score composed by Lefteris Tsavdaridis exclusively for the event and performed by the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra.

The 20th edition of Thessaloniki Documentary Festival was a blend of past, present and future and opened us new doors and surpass the limits of documentary with a series of movies that challenge these boundaries.

PAST AND FUTURE EVENTS

Thessaloniki

The 15th Thessaloniki International Book Fair

by Hande Yetkin

Thematic events, literary meetings, workshops, speeches, screenings, art and theatre, ed-

ucational corners, books, books and books like a paradise… Are you ready for welcoming the season with four days of the international marathon? Balkan Beats gladly presents the biggest and most famous fair of Greece.

Thessaloniki Book Fair is the most important an-

nual project for the book and book practitioners that is organised in Greece and co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund under the Central Macedonia Regional Operational Program 2014-2020. More than hundreds of exhibitors, publishers, writers, translators, literary agents, journalists, booksellers, librarians, institutions, bodies and organizations mainly from Greece and the rest of the Balkan countries, Western Europe, South-Eastern Mediterranean and the whole world are expected to visit Thessaloniki to attend that cultural organisation which combines thematic events, literary meetings, workshops, speeches, screenings, art and theatre, educational corners for adults and youngsters and some informative festivals as ‘New Writers’ and ‘Translation’. Almost 50 authors have already been declared their participation and more than 400 events will certainly hold during the four days of fair.

alive. The event considers literature as a body of collective, individual and cultural memory that defines historical consciousness and, therefore, our present. In the context of this tribute, events will be held in different contexts such as for literary articles that precede themes of memory and forgetfulness and the Jewish experience in Greece and more widely, significant literary anniversaries.

The book fair does not only aim to connect with

the adults but also cares about interacting with children via special educational activities. On 3rd and 4th of May, from 09.00 am to 14.00 pm, there will be a live exhibition by the attendance of some organised groups of kids from kindergartens, primary schools, high schools, lyceums and other prefectures in Thessaloniki. On Thursday and Friday, there will be non stop meetings with the authors and illustrators. In addition to them, musical and visual events, workshops and related events will be held during the program, and all those events will be open to children, adults and especially to the educators and parents. Parallel events are going to take place as well. For instance, an illustration exhibition which is called ‘French Sweets and Sweets’ that is a tribute to French-speaking, will be an excellent opportunity for the youngsters and elders to enjoy the works by Greek illustrators.

Also, French authors Philippe Lechermeier and Michel Piquemal; illustrator Marion Billet and author/ illustrator Julia Kaergel from Germany, on the occasion of their books that have been released in Greek, will be waiting for the little book-lovers.

This year, the fair will be held in between 3rd and 6th of May in Thessaloniki International Exhibition and Congress Centre HELEXPO with the collaboration of ‘Hellenic Foundation for Culture’ to give visitors the opportunity of exploring aspects of the contemporary publishing worldwide. The main theme of this year’s fair is going to be Democracy in the 21st Century to highlight critical global issues by focusing on nationalism and the questioning of democratic achievements, even in the heart of Europe. Two hundred and forty years after the death of Voltaire and fifty years after May 1968, in a country like Greece, which gives its own If you are a book lover looking for a marathon to battle for democracy in the crisis, the fair wants to meet with your soulmates around the world, do remind that the demand for democracy remains not miss this event!

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Around the Balkans BALKANIZATER

In between homes

by Claudia Maria Cornea

Home – such a simple word, but what is the definition of home? For some people home is

where theirs heart is, for others is the place where they feel comfortable, for some is just about the people surrounding them. When you move to a new country for a long period, you are forced to find your home. Even though your heart is not ready, the comfort is not as cosy as it was before or you are not surrounded by the people you were used to, this is your new home and in one way or another you have to get used to it. am home in Greece, Thessaloniki. Why? Because I found the similarities I needed between my past home and my new one. Which are them?

The two cities Iași vs Thessaloniki

They are the second largest cities in Romania/

Facing a new home

© Claudia Cornea

The idea of home is with us since we are born.

Even if the home for some people is an one room apartment, a fancy luxury house or just a small house in the middle of the mountains. For each of us it is the place we call it home. During our stages of life the idea of home it changes sometimes. In our childhood, home for us is the place where our parents are. During the university the home is our dormitory, than the home becomes the apartment we rent and at some point home might become the apartment we will own. But what if, at some point the idea of changing the home, will not be only about changing the four walls that surrounds you, but also changing the country, the people you are used to and also your everyday habits.

The experience of moving from Iasi to Thessaloniki was an one month journey which accommodates for me to discover similarities and differences between my hometown and my new home. Now, after one month I can gladly say I

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Greece. Both of them are university cities, full of culture, with a lot of history and artistic life.

When you go out in these two cities, you can feel the energy and the good vibes everywhere. Every day there is at least one event that will match your wishes according to your personality and for sure you will never get bored. You can easily find awesome free events but also sometimes you just have to pay for the entrance. From concerts to film and music festivals, marathons, movie screenings, photography exhibitions, in both cities you will find a variety of events that will match your wishes.

Walking around the two cities

Both cities will just make you fall in love with the

long city walks. In Iași, June is the perfect month to have the walk along Copou hill, which is also a big park. The straight road, that is crossing the park is three kilometers long and it has freshly blossom linden trees on both sides during the month of June. On the other side Thessaloniki has this awesome four kilometers seafront. You will just love to spend your afternoon walking along the sea, admiring the sunset, the port, the White Tower and the famous umbrellas of Thessaloniki.

BALKANIZATER

The people

You just can not talk about these two cities with-

Around the Balkans

saka, plăcintă cu spanac – spanakopita, ciorbă de fasole – fasolada etc. But also there are some traditional greek dishes, that you will not find in Romania or you might find them only in traditional greek restaurants. You will just fall in love with the greek cuisine, like: gyros, bougatsa, trigona, fried feta with honey, greek frappe, tzaziki etc.

Also there are some traditional romanian dishes that you will love: ciorbă Rădăuțeană, tochitură with polenta, cozonac, papanași etc.

out thinking about the people that live in them.

The fact is that you can not make a comparison between the people in these two cities because they are similar. The two cities are university cities, so during the university year the city is full of students, parties, concerts and events. You will find most of the time friendly, open minded people, ready to give a hand in case you need any help. The balkan spirit is in the heart of both romanians and greeks, so you will not find too many The feeling that this beautiful new city, Thessaloniki will be my home for the next one year is diferences when you will interact with them. incredible. Once you get used to the city, you will love it. It is very hard not to like this city, conThe food sidering the fact that Thessaloniki gives such a There are a lot of similarities between the ro- big variety of things to do around. It is imposmanian and greek food. Just some similarities sible not to find some similarities between your between Romanian/Greek dishes: sarmale-dol- hometown and Thessaloniki, that will just make madakia, chifteluțe - keftethes, musaca - mous- the home transition much easier.

Enjoying the walk in Thessaloniki

© Claudia Cornea

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Around the Balkans BALKANIZATER

1st of March The celebration of spring

by Claudia Maria Cornea

March is the month that brings hope and happiness to our hearts, or at least to those who

have one. Every time it comes, here, in the Balkans, we all know that it is the moment to put our winter clothes away for nine more months. Also, something else comes along with it. For some people, it is the month that announces Spring, for others it announces Autumn. For some people it is the month in which they celebrate the International Women’s Day and for others it is the month in which they celebrate the Beer’s Day. What does it represent for the people from the Balkan countries?

When you take a closer look, you will realize

A: A simple word, called differently in each country:

Mărțișor, Martenitsa, Martinka, Verore or Martis. that for each individual this month represents something different. But somehow we managed Q: What is Martia? to find some similarities in some of the Balkan countries: Romania, Bulgaria, F.Y.R.O.M., Albania A: A traditional charm, made of two strings - one white and one red. People from Balkan peninsula and Greece. wear it for good luck and protection, on every 1st Q: What do all these countries have in common? of March, when they celebrate the arrival of Spring

Mărțișor, Martenitsa, Martinka, Verore or Martis.

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© Claudia Cornea

BALKANIZATER

Albania – Verore, Greece – Martia, F.Y.R.O.M. – Martinika

In Greece, the celebration is named as the month - March, or “Marti”. They used their creativity for the names of other celebrations they have. The Martia is made of two strings, one red and one white, and people wear it all month long. In some regions of Greece people take the bracelet off when they see the first swallow and they put it in a rose bush so that the swallow can pick it up and build its own nest.

In Albania and F.Y.R.O.M. the celebration is similar to the one in Greece.

Around the Balkans

Romania – Mărțișor

The word “Mărțișor” means something like little or dear March. On this day, romanians celebrate the rebirth of Nature - the transition between Winter and Spring. You can see this duality in the colors of this celebration – white and red – representing peace and war, or Winter and Spring, fighting to take over each other. Somehow, the battle is always won by Spring. Even though sometimes Spring winns the war one month later, people still celebrate the coming of spring on the 1st of March, with or without it.

Nowadays, the romanian Mărțișor is a jewel or

small object like a clover, a snowdrop or other symbols of Spring that are tied to a red and white string. People weare it up to two weeks, pinned In Bulgaria, the 1st of March is called the Baba to their jacket or blouse.

Marta Day and it means “Grandma March”. A typical Martenitsa consists of two small dolls, Pizho In all these countries, the talisman is always givand Penda, representing a male and a female. en as a gift and not bought on oneself. The talisThe Bulgarians wear the Martenitsa from the 1st man is usually protecting its owner from different of March until they first see a blossoming tree. diseases. It is meant to bring luck and protection The ritual of taking off the Martenitsa differs from to the person that wears it. Does it actually bring one place to another. Some people tie it to a tree, luck? Who knows. What we know for sure, here, in believing that this is how the tree will grow healthy the Balkans, is that this is a fascinating tradition and lucky, and not by taking care of it. Others put that has been held for hundreds of years, in all this it under a stone and let their next year be deter- countries. As an initiative of some of these counmined by the creature closest to the martenitsa. If tries, the custom of Martia and other traditions the creature is a larva, a worm or an ant, the per- that are related to the 1st of March celebrations son will be lucky, but if it is a spider, the person will were proposed for inclusion in UNESCO’s List of be unlucky, unsuccessful and unhealthy. the intangible Cultural Heritage.

Bulgaria - Martenitsa

Martenitsa © Claudia Cornea

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Around the Balkans GREEK CULTURE

Konstantinos Kaváfis - The Hellenic A life dedicated to poetry

by Tomás Cunha

Konstantinos Kaváfis is surely one of the great names of modern Greek poetry, which be-

comes even more particular because he was born and lived practically all his life in Alexandria.

In 1863, at a time when the Egyptian metropolis

still belonged to the vast Ottoman Empire, Kaváfis was born son of Greek parents - his father was a prosperous merchant who died suddenly when the poet was still a child. With the financial situation suddenly precarious, the family found itself in need to emigrate to England, where they lived during seven years. Returning, in 1877, to Alexandria, they found themselves forced to leave again in 1882, to Constantinople, due to the Anglo-Egyptian war. After returning to his hometown, three years later, he never left again.

Alexandria, Kaváfis’ obsession, marks all of his work where the mythical Alexandria from the Hellenistic period of 200 BCw coexists with the sensual and cosmopolitan Alexandria of the early 18th century - full of bars and brothels and handsome young men whom Kaváfis allowed himself to be bewitched, and later remembered in their ephemeral beauty. The word Efebo is, in fact, the one that most likely populates the 154 poems that he published - all of them written af-

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ter Kaváfis counted 40 springs, when he rejected everything he had written previously and started to dedicate himself to writing only poems he considered worthy of this name, distributing them to his circle of friends. The actual complete canon was only published after his death, in 1933.

At the time, neither the style or the themes

throughout these 154 poems were vulgar, although it’s important to remember that the intimacy of the writer was directed to his circle of close friends and just few more people had access to them. Alexandria was the muse of the poet and it’s impossible to distance him from both the city and the Hellenic world, as well as from the influences of Greek culture and civilisation on practically everything that surrounds us.

In his poems we see the great battles of Sparta or Alexander the Great. At the same time, we see the perfection of the Hellenic statuary, with numerous references, not only to Greek sculpture but also to the aesthetic perfection associated with it.

GREEK CULTURE

Around the Balkans

Konstantinos Kaváfis © Unknown

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Around the Balkans GREEK CULTURE

“and I saw that lovely body which seemed as though Eros in his mastery had fashioned it, joyfully shaping its well-formed limbs, molding its tall build, shaping its face tenderly,” “At the Café Door” — C.P. Cavafy, Collected Poems. Translated by Edmund Keeley and Philip Sherrard. Edited by George Savidis.

Revised Edition. Princeton University Press, 1992

Assumed homosexual, Kaváfis shamelessly ap-

proaches the passion. Kaváfis’ poetry is always surrounding the detachment and evocation - a look at youth from the old age; a focus on the details that memory has retained; or even a look at the past when his poems refer intimacy, and when they’re about the classical antiquity. Here, we see the other side of Kaváfis, the one of the poet-historian, always leaning over historical periods of decline, where even greatness may be celebrated, but always with the decay to come.

It’s the tragic side of life that Kaváfis brings to us through the episodes that resonate through time. About 200 BC, he wrote about the deeds of Alexander the Great, that were praised, with a tone whose irony came from knowing its end, the battles defeated, at a time when Hellenism was at its peak.

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“In the loose living of my early years the impulses of my poetry were shaped, the boundaries of my art were laid down.

That’s why the repentance was so fickle.

And my resolutions to hold back, to change, lasted two weeks at the most.”

“Understanding” — C.P. Cavafy, Collected Poems. Translated by Edmund Keeley and Philip Sherrard. Edited by George Savidis.

Revised Edition. Princeton University Press, 1992

From Kaváfis, only the wise seemed to have glimpsed his talent in life, since he, who had not visited Greece for many years and worked all his life at the Egyptian Ministry of Public Works, died of laryngeal cancer in 1933. Seventy years in which his reputation as a poet was obscure, sharing the path of so many others who, only in posterity, achieved the relief that they would certainly have enjoyed having in life. An inglorious fate to someone who went so deep.

GREEK CULTURE

Around the Balkans

Interview with Modal4

by Filip GrĂĄc

Modal4 lie between black and white, without being grey but more as a messenger through

time reflecting the echoes of a forgotten ritual, the never-ending the agony of expressing the more profound and darker moments of a human soul. Music has always been a way to share and show our feelings and especially love pain and grief... and that’s precisely what Modal4 do‌ they share. They share their music and performance adding us to their companion making each one part of their sonic ritual.

Modal4 is a band of 4 individuals contributing their perspective to an ancient and still never-ending journey to the most profound human emotions... 1

1

Source: https://www.reverbnation.com/modal4

Cover of your debut album contains beautiful artwork by Eleni Lomvardou with four leaves from four completely different trees. Is also like this within your band? Does each of the four musicians in your ensemble bring different musical flavours and influences into the final sound?

Your music explores quite a wide range of genres and soundscapes (ambient, jazz, makam, etc.). How did your band come to be? What was the initial idea behind bringing these different musical flavours together?

PAVLOS: In connection with the different mu- PAVLOS: We knew each other for many years,

sical flavours, there is something exciting happening in our quartet. We have there the balance of the eastern spice - Yayli Tanbur - which is an instrument that might seem exotic to a western listener. Then fretless guitar, which is at the same time playing in a very unexpected way. And then there is also contrabass and drums, which are on the one hand very conventional instruments in many places of the world in last 100 years, but they are at the same time used in a very unusual combination ... This combination is interesting enough because there is a balance of almost everything that you can combine in 4 instruments, and I think that it is at the same time one of the essential ingredients that make our music unique.

and each of us has played in various ensembles before the formation of Modal4. Dimitris (the drummer) has played in two different bands.

Thanos (fretless guitar player) has played for several years in different bands that were focused on various genres from traditional Balkan music to punk music. Evgenios has studied and played a lot of classical Ottoman music. So, we communicate in the way in which various musical styles co-exist at the same time in all of us.

As a result, you can hear the combination of all these influences in Modal4. I think that this is a very important aspect of music making. Just to feel free to let come out from your brain all the things that you have experienced during those years that you exist as a musician.

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Around the Balkans GREEK CULTURE

Source: Courtesy of Modal4

How does your play on the contrabass work when it comes to recording or concerts? Do you usually come into the studio with pre-prepared ideas or do your tracks develop primarily via improvisation on shows?

PAVLOS: Bit of both. In each of these cases,

there are certain essential things that I have to do. But in our project, we have a lot of places where I can play freely. As far as I am concerned, by playing the bass, most of the time I feel free to play or to accompany our quartet in the way that I feel at the moment. So initially I have the basic information in my mind, but then according to the feel of the moment I also play the notes or phrases that come spontaneously out of me.

One of the great freedoms in world music is the possibility to rise above the conventional understanding of musical genres and geographical limits in which music is often times

32

categorised. But in your music, the physical boundaries do not seem to be a big deal. Do you feel like being traditionally connected to any geographical area?

PAVLOS: In the world music there are so many different musical traditions that each musician can, in the end, decide to make his unique type or style of music. There are just so many combinations. Too many. As for our sound, it is based on a very specific musical phenomenon, so called modality. Modality could be found in musical traditions of Mediterranean, South Europe, North Africa and the whole of Asia. All of these traditions are working on modal tunes, which could be described as a fundamental, common way on which music from these areas functions. This does not mean that it is easy to combine all of these musical traditions and to play however you want. But you can find a certain code that connects them all. So modality is a very important ingredient that makes our music open and connecting.

GREEK CULTURE

Around the Balkans

Are you planning to go on the tour or release some new material in the upcoming months?

PAVLOS: Yes, of course. We have some new

pieces that we are currently working on. In the near future, we are planning to collect all of the accumulated materials and make another CD. But also our great joy is to play live concerts.

More specific details about exact places and dates could be found on our website.

One year ago, your debut album was positioned within EBU World Music Charts. Did it change anything in your professional life? Were you more noticed and invited by World Music Festivals since this moment?

MODAL4 are: Evgenios Voulgaris

> yayli tanbur

Thanos Gountanos > fretless guitar Pavlos Spyropoulos Dimitris Tasoudis

> contrabass > drums

PAVLOS: It changed a lot, and we are very glad

about it. Now our tracks could be listened anywhere EVGENIOS VOULGARIS in the world by people who enjoy this kind of music.

His interest in traditional music started in 1992 and took the form of apprenticeship next to What is about the titles of the tracks on Christos Tsiamoulis. Since 2001 he has been atyour album? Some of them are really tending lessons on the interpretation of Ottoman mysterious, for example, cabbages... music next to Fahrettin Cimenli in Istanbul. Of PAVLOS: The cabbages. :) It is the name of the particular importance to his musical training has tune – Lachana. If we made it in English, it would been a series of seminars on the oud, saz, afghani be cabbages. But usually we base our tracks on rabab, as well as composition and orchestration traditional folk songs, and thus they usually get in the context of the “Labyrinth” Musical Workshops in Houdetsi, Crete. A multi-instrumentalist their names from this source as well. himself, he has repeatedly teamed with master musicians and composers, such as Ross Daly, Feel free to support our socials Christos Tsiamoulis, Nikos Kipurgos, Dimitris and Bandcamp artist page: Papadimitriou, Notis Marvudis, Nima ben David, Facebook Page: Paul Winter in concerts, recordings and televihttps://www.facebook.com/Modal4/ sion productions in Greece and abroad. He has collaborated with Τhe Orchestra of Colors, CamBandcamp: erata and The State Orchestra. Of particular inhttps://modal4.bandcamp.com/ terest to him is teaching, composing music, and Youtube Modal4 debut album: writing music for theatre. Cd productions: “Wanhttps://youtu.be/j--fj_igbE8 derings”, “The message of the prince”, “Apsilies”.

Book: “Rebetika songs of the Inner War period”.

Thank you for the support!

He lives in Patras, Greece.

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Around the Balkans GREEK CULTURE

THANOS GOUNTANOS

Thanos Gountanos was born in Thessaloniki, Greece in 1983 and six years later had his first touch with the guitar. He studied classical guitar with Costas Cotsiolis, advanced music theory (harmony, counterpoint, fugue) with Vassilis Kitsos and composition with Michalis Lapidakis at the Musical Department of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. At the same time, his interest turned to Balkan and Anatolian modal music while studying laouto, lavta, oud, and saz. This led to discovering the fretless guitar next to Erkan Oǧur in Istanbul. Gradually he developed a unique style of guitar blending modal, classical and modern music. As a professional musician, he participated in numerous concerts and recordings in Greece and Europe with various projects and artists. Indicatively some of them are: BAiLdSA (Balkan-gypsy-punk), Loxandra (Eastern Mediterranean-World Fusion), SoskeNanay? (turkish-gipsy), Modal4 (contemporary modal), MustakBajam (psychedelic modal), Čači Vorba (Polish gipsy), Plaza Quartet, Ross Daly, Evanthia Reboutsika, Dilek Koç, National State Theater of Northern Greece, Symphonic Orchestra of Thessaloniki and many more.

SPYROPOULOS PAVLOS

He began music studies in early childhood with

Markella Tsouva as a pianist, and since 2003 he studied the double bass with Haralambos Himarios in Thessaloniki. As a double bass player since 2007, he is a member of various music groups, inspired by music traditions of Southern Europe and Asia, as well as classical music or

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jazz. The last years till now, he is a member of “Modal4” and “Neda” (contemporary modal), “Caja Secreta” (nuevo flamenco), “Magnanimus Trio” (modal jazz), “Tir Fada” (irish tunes).

He also plays with Ross Daly at “Labyrinth ensemble” since 2010. He has also participated in concerts or recordings with many musicians such as Erkan Ogur, Derya Turkan, Sokratis Sinopoulos, Zohar Fresco, Giorgis Manolakis, Harris Lambrakis, Kelly Thoma, Pedram Kzavar Zamini, Imamyar and Rufat Hasanov and many more.

He studied musicology at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and music theory in “Tassia Kassiola” Conservatory of Trikala.

DIMITRIS TASOUDIS

Dimitris Tasoudis was born in 1980 in Thessa-

loniki, Greece. He first studied piano with Sophia Zoumi and drums with his brother, Thanos. He holds a BA degree in Musicology (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki), an MA in Contemporary Studies (University of York) and diplomas on Percussion and Composition (State Conservatory of Thessaloniki). As a member of various music combos (post-rock, modal jazz and world music), he has recorded six CDs. He has composed music for films as a member of the Prefabricated Quartet; during the last years, he is working on his own in this area. He is currently teaching music in secondary education; he has also taught in the Departments of Music (‘improvisation on percussion’) and Film (‘film music’) at Aristotle University. He is doing his PhD on ‘metaphor and metonymy in film music’, under the supervision of Petros Vouvaris in the University of Macedonia, Department of Music Science and Art.

GREEK CULTURE

Around the Balkans

Smoking in public spaces

by Oznur Coşar

Despite the fact that the law against smoking in public places went into effect almost 10

years ago (2008), Greece is not even close to implementing it. And even though smokers are the minority, these are the ones who decide whether it is permitted or not to smoke… which is nearly everywhere, literally. Many of the 300 representatives in the Greek Parliament are smokers and smoke inside the House. From that alone, how will it be possible to implement such a law for the general public?

Yet, it is the bullying behavior of the (nicotine)

addict that prevails in public places. There is hardly a cafe, bar or restaurant where a minority of smokers does not spoil the experience by sharing their smoke with the rest of the patrons.

The excuse of proprietors is the loss of clients to other places where smoking is allowed. At the moment, there are very few Greek bars, restaurants or cafes where smoking is actually banned.

Personally, I believe that it would be great to see more “brave” proprietors who won’t allow smoking in their business places.

Another factor that encourages Greek smokers

to continue is the low prices of cigarettes compared to the rest of Europe. While in most countries cigarettes cost twice as much as they used to, in Greece they remain rather cheap. And while those in charge raise the tax on everything else, tobacco taxes remain relatively low.

But there is more... Despite the advertisement of smoking banned, in Greek films and television series the actors smoke and seem to enjoy the experience. Smoking is still presented as being something “cool”. Therefore, it is no surprise that even doctors and nurses smoke in public hospitals.

In an interview made with some Greek citizens,

it shows that the ones who do not smoke are very uncomfortable with this situation and think that smokers should be respectful and comply with law. At the same time, smokers are also aware that they disturb passive smokers. If the law were more strict, if the restaurant and cafe owners compiled with the law, everyone would feel forced to go outside the establishments to smoke. Finally, if all owners actually obeyed this law; there would be no fear of losing customers.

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Social and Political SOCIAL AND POLITICAL ISSUES

Political Issues Between Turkey and Greece Based on Recent Statements

by Ahmet Şahin

hese days the relationship between Turkey and Greece is getting worse because of unac-

ceptable explanations from politicians, journalists and so on. Although one of the best ways is to ignore what has been said by those who want to harm the relations between nations, there are still some people who might be affected by comments.

First of all, it has been hundreds of years that

both publics used to live together and shared cultures, traditions attitudes and similarities.

Even if we have a quick look at how they look like, definitely we will notice how they are almost the same. There are so many people on both sides who aimed to make the relationship worse just because of earning money or having a good position in society. However, their way only works to poison people on both sides of shores.

Secondly, there are two statements below focused

invited to a Skai Radio program. Pangalos, who served as Foreign Minister 1996-1999, said among others: “In my political career I met many Turks but I did not meet a good Turk. The best Turk is the dead Turk.” The other one is Erdogan’s top adviser Yiğit Bulut, when he announced, on a TV show, that he would “break the legs of the Greek Prime Minister or any minister who will step on Imia.” From both sides, all of the announcements only refer to increasing the racism and xenophobia; there is not another description of them.

on terrible arguments such as the one mentioned Finally, as a conclusion in my point of view, all comon 13th February by Theodoros Pangalos, who was munities should believe to live in a peaceful atmosphere that will not be affected by people inciting them to hate each other and to be violent against each other. As much as possible, we should not allow people to spread out by their poisoning ideas. In both sides, people should increase the awareness of living together without thinking to discriminate people because of their ethnicity. Otherwise, peace will not be permanent in both territories. There is only one antidote which brings us together that is to communicate with each other and fight against people who intend to separate us. We should be keeping our unique similarities and try to transfer it to young generations. As the well-known progressive rock band Pink Floyd said: “together we stand, divided we fall.”

Source: https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com

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NEWS AROUND THE WORLD

Social and Political

The Facebook Scandal or the Cambridge Analytica Scandal?

by Isabel Tootill

There has been a giant hype about what has happened to the data of over 50 million Face-

book users and, more importantly, what it has been used for. So, what is all this story about?

And whose fault is it all, in the end?

Many have been the privacy scandals that It all may have started in 2014, when Alexander

Facebook has faced over the years – in 2006, Kogan, a Psychology professor in Cambridge, with the creation of the news feed; in 2007, created his own app – thisisyourdigitallife -, able when it implemented the beacon system (it to harvest personal information of millions of usshowed what users had bought online on their friends news feeds); in 2013, when a bug exposed phone numbers and email addresses of about 6 million users; in 2014, when a study was put in motion in order to understand how emotions could spread on social media by changing half a million randomly selected users’ news feeds to show more positive or negative posts – but none of them has been so visible and affectable as the latest (March 2018), involving Cambridge Analytica selling private details of over 50 million Facebook users to Donald Trump’s election campaign as a form of political propaganda, and Facebook’s knowledge about all these data harvesting allegations.

Source: https://www.behindwoods.com/news-shotsslideshow/explainer-on-facebook-cambridge-analytica-scandal/facebook-cambridge-analytica-scandal-news-breaks-out-on-saturday.html

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Social and Political NEWS AROUND THE WORLD

ers, through their friendship with 270 thousand users who had sold their data to this app, allegedly for academic purposes. Users’ details, such as friend networks, «likes», and personal data, were used as a way to map personality traits. Being this a gold mine for anyone who wants to target an audience, Kogan soon sold the collected information to Cambridge Analytica - a British political consulting and data firm who worked for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, as well as for the Brexit campaign. Having already made significant promises to important figures of the Republic Party when hired for Donald Trump’s campaign, Cambridge Analytica used this data information to identify the personality traits of American voters, for it to be possible to influence their behaviour throughout the campaign. This turned out to be one of the biggest social media leaks of all times.

Although

denying any knowledge about the usage of Facebook data of over 50 million users for political propaganda, Mark Zuckerberg admitted that Facebook committed some mistakes that led to this finale. In a post on his own Facebook page, Mark Zuckerberg – founder and CEO of the company – told the story of how, in 2013, Kogan proposed the study mentioned above, for academic purposes only. The mistake might have been the fact that, due to the way the platform worked, at the time, Kogan had access to the data of the friends and

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of the friends of friends who downloaded the app and participated in the study. Later, in 2015, Facebook was alerted by The Guardian that the data collected by Kogan had been sold to Cambridge Analytica. At this time, Kogan’s app was banned, and Facebook assured that the data in the hands of Cambridge Analytica had been erased. It wasn’t until last week that Facebook discovered, allegedly through social media, that all this data had never been wiped, taking the immediate action of banning Cambridge Analytica of all their services, as well as making sure that the company would be subjected to an audit conducted by Facebook itself. Moreover, Zuckerberg promised to open an investigation over every app that had access to vast amounts of information until 2014, as well as to audit to all applications with suspicious activities, banning all of them who won’t agree.

Alongside these actions, Facebook will put restrictions on the data that applications can access, limiting them to name, photo and email, as well as creating a simple tool that will let the user know which apps have access to their data. In any case, the faces of Facebook, especially Mark Zuckerberg, have been summoned to appear before some important committees (the British Parliament, some Senators of the American Congress, and the Senate Commerce Committee), to answer some questions about Facebook’s relationship and knowledge about the data harvesting scandal.

SCIENCE AND TECH

MixFix

Headphones: The Next Generation What are bone conduction headphones?

by Cristian Lupu

How many types of headphones do you know? Over-Ear, On-Ear, In-ear (more recently be-

came popular), but do you know what bone conduction headphones are? Same as the name says, they just use a more direct way of transmitting the sound vibrations to the inner ear through the top of your jar, by bones, and later to the brain.

Types of headphones

Let’s start with something a bit more familiar. Back to the bone conduction headphones, to

We like music. Some more, some less, but we like it. But why do we like it? Maybe because we enjoy order more than we think. Shoes stays with shoes, socks with socks, shirts with shirts; we don’t like underwear in our fridge or eggs in the shower. The same goes for music, which, in the end, is only some musical notes – but if the notes are not in an order, we’ll not like them anymore. Imagine a kid hitting a piano, still musical notes, right? Maybe the same musical notes as in a Mozart sheet music but, when the order is missing, everything is missing, losing its meaning.

wear them you don’t have to put them over/on/ in your ears, so we may say that we are adding a third voice to our head. We already have two inside, right? The one who tells you to do something and the one who tells you not to. Is this the third voice that is going to make peace between the other two voices? Personally, I don’t think so, but at least we can enjoy our well ordered musical notes inside our head, without being disturbed by objects in our ears, as well as without having a membrane blowing air and microbes into them. Also, without depriving us from the other sounds around us – making driving, riding

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MixFix SCIENCE AND TECH

a bicycle or even crossing the street way safer than classical headphones. At the same time... yes, sometimes we like headphones exactly for this reason, not to listen to all the noise around us, so bone conducting headphones may not be suitable for having some solo time in the bus, plane, underground and so on.

gine and so many other machineries to make our life easier and to allow us to be lazier in the end… funny, right? So, if you have a document that you need to present at University, you’ll probably not use a floppy disk, right? For sure not a CD... maybe a USB Stick? But, being lazy by nature, I’m sure that you’ll simply upload it a Cloud. As we saw, we had many invenRemember when 30 years ago we were lis- into tions on this field, some more popular, some tening to music on vinyl/phonograph records? not so popular even though they might sound After that, on audio cassettes - one step forquite promising in the beginning. ward from some tiny-tiny holes on a record to magnetic tapes. Next, we had the Compact Back to headphones, how do we perceive bone Disc (CD), after the MP3 Player, going digital. conducting headphones right now? How famous Thinking now about storage capacity since we will they be? In the end, bone conducting headwere talking about digital formats, remember phones are based on a military technology, but the floppy disk? It had 1,44MB of storage, then even if they are out there on the market for a the CD with 700MB, then the DVD with 4,7GB. while, how many people have you seen on the All sound familiar and have been very famous street using such a device? I mean... they are during their times. But how famous was the light, safe, wireless, ergonomic and still... not next one? Blu-Ray Discs? Also an optical disk, around our ears. Are we scared of having anothbut with a capacity of 25GB for the one lay- er voice inside our head? Or it’s just the same ered ones and 50GB for the double layered thing that happened with Pepsi Blue? It was ones. From 700MB to 50GB - quite a progress , tasty, it was affordable, but come on... what any wasn’t it? Probably, Blue-Rays weren’t so pop- other natural fruit or food do we eat often that is ular due to the progress of the other storage blue? None. Do we need to talk also about Santa devices such as USB Sticks which, nowadays, Claus? I don’t think so. can go up to 2TB of storage - this one being launched in 2017. Anyway, we are a lazy spe- Now you know it, will you buy it? Will you ask cies, and that’s why we invented the steam en- Santa Claus for bone conducting headphones?

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FOOD

MixFix

How to enjoy in a typical Greek taverna

by Oznur Coşar

In this article, we will talk about eating and drinking a taverna in the islands or mainland in Greece.

Here, there is no pre-opened service. When you

sit down, a waitress comes up and uses a practical cover, mostly in a ‘disposable’ style, with a clean table. The service starts with a bread basket and water, and two small plates (we always have, at least, two people). “Where is the cutlery?

What kind of service is this?”, you ask yourself…

Well, if you look better, the cutlery will in the bread basket! Then, you order... appetizers, salad or main course. Unless you mention the order in which you want, it will all be served in a row.

have a chamber. There are no later customs like changing a plate or a glass. No one will take care of you until the end of your meal. Don’t misinterpret, they do not ignore you… This is the greek way due to the lack of appreciation towards table intervention by locals - the table is assembled by the client. If you like the komi army, which wanders around you without meaning, even filling your water, Greece is not the place to find it.

After your dinner don’t expect the dessert. It is eat-

en here in sweet pastry; there are only a few choices The dishes are brought to the table by the wait- in the restaurant for mouth-sweetening purposes ers, as they leave immediately to the kitchen. (ice cream, maybe revenge, marmalade or yoghurt).

This is not carelessness or poverty of service… it is just the Greek way. The national drink, ouzo, is The patisserie is a subject by itself. If one of your served in a bottle (but you can order in the glass, travel plans coincides with a diet, leave the reif you want). In Greece, open wine (house wine) gime and enjoy what you choose from the winis fine; it is served in a traditional Greek jar, leav- dow; you will not regret it. The taverna is not the place to chat with your friends in a loud voice ing behind the typical glass wine bottle way. and talk in laughter. Everyone sips calmly their By looking at the type of restaurant you are sit- wine or ouzo, and no one disturbs the other custing in, you can easily guess whether or not you tomers, while listening traditional live music.

Source: http://www.gezicigunluk.com/selanik_gezi_notlari.html

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MixFix MIXFIX

From the History of Saxophone

by Ahmet Şahin

Brief information about how saxophone has been discovered by Antoine-Joseph Sax. Saxophone is part of a family of single-reed

wind instruments, ranging from soprano to bass, and is characterized by a conical metal tube and finger keys. The first saxophone was patented by Antonie-Joseph Sax, in Paris, in 1846. Sax grew up in the trade of instrument making as his father was an expert in this field. By the age of six, Sax had already become an expert in it as well.

Sax, being the musician he was, became aware of the tonal disparity between strings and winds, as well as the differences between brasses and woodwinds. The strings were being overpowered by the winds and the woodwinds were being overblown by the brasses. Sax needed an instrument that would balance the three sections. His answer to the problem was a horn with the body of a brass instrument and the mouthpiece of a woodwind instrument. When he combined these two elements, the saxophone was born.

The saxophone finally became known as an inte-

gral part of all bands in 1845. This was the year of the famous “Battle of the bands”. The French Army band was still using “traditional” instrumentation and Sax saw this as an opportunity to show the world how the saxophone could improve the tonal quality in all bands: he suggested a contest between an army band composed of the original orchestral instrumentation against a band with an instrumentation that included

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Ten members of the saxophone family. From largest to smallest: contrabass, bass, baritone, tenor, C melody, alto, F mezzo-soprano, soprano, C soprano, sopranino.

Source: http://static.newworldencyclopedia.org

saxophones. Sax’s band of twenty-eight men, compared to the French Army band of thirty-five, overwhelmed the crowd. That day, the saxophone was officially introduced into the French Army Band and, soon, to all other bands.

MIXFIX

MixFix

The Theory of Infinity Another point of view

by Cristian Lupu

What is infinity? Where does it start? Where does it end? Does it really end? Who are we? What’s our purpose? Where are we heading? In his last book, “Origins”, Dan Brown was asking more or less the same questions. But those questions... do they have a RIGHT and well defined answer?

If we look for explanations online about any of

those questions, we’ll find various definitions, belonging to different people, who have tried to fulfill this lack of information, each one with their own point of view and, at some point, new definitions appear until many points of view reach to a common point and, this way, a definition becomes, let’s say... official. Wikipedia describes infinity as being “a concept describing something without any bound or larger than any natural number”. But how far our mind can go when you know that this is a limitless subject?

First thing that comes to our mind while just

saying “infinite” is, maybe, the numbers related

The only thing that we can experience to infinity!

and yes, the infinity of numbers is what makes numbers uncountable. Remember when you were a kid and your family makes you to count to ten? Such an achievement, right? But you needed time for this, and after a while you were able to count to one hundred. But have you ever thought about when have you stopped to count more and more? Well, not all of us stopped counting and, because numbers were getting really long and hard to read, we started giving them names: hundreds, thousands, millions, billions (1012) and all the way down to Centillion (10600). Never thought about such large numbers, right? But now, again, why did we stop at Centillion? The numbers are infinite, aren’t they?

Source: www.thepapercubby.com

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The second thing that comes to our minds while

talking about infinity might be the Space. Universe. And beyond! So, starting with our home, Terra, how far have we reached? Well, we know that the Earth is part of the Solar System. We also know that the Solar System is part of a galaxy, the one that we call Milky Way. The Milky Way and the Andromeda Galaxy are a binary system of giant spiral galaxies belonging to a group of 50 closely bound galaxies known as the Local Group, surrounded by a Local Void, itself being part of the Virgo Supercluster. Starts to be confusing, right? It’s like we have reached our ability to count beyond ten when we were kids. Anyway, moving on, even if we haven’t been there physically, although we tried to take at least some photos, our mind didn’t stop here, and all this infinity concept made us think beyond and go further saying that, at some moment, we are reaching our Universe. And after, Megaverse, which is the all of the Universes together. But only by saying “all” it’s like putting a limit to all existing Universes, right? And we said that they are... infinite!

Going back to the previous question: How far

can our mind go when you know that this is a limitless subject? Are we limited? Let’s make an exercise. Just imagine that right now, in some really far away Universe there is another Earth, exactly the same as ours, with the same invented ways of putting order in life, such as time, hours, minutes... Exactly with the same people, doing exactly the same thing as we are doing now. There is another Cristian, somewhere, writing the same article, being annoyed about the poor internet connectivity, thinking about who’s gonna read his article and if they’ll enjoy it? There is another you, out there, who has, right now, his eyes on the laptop/ phone reading the same thing? Would you like to meet the other you? Talking about infinity, we can’t assume that there is not another me, or another you. Going further... If you’ll meet the other you, will you be capable of having a conversation, or it will be just your mirror doing the same thing? Or will you be his mirror?

“Where do we come from? Where are we going?”

— Dan Brown, Origins

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MIXFIX

From Blackface to Black Panther

MixFix

by Raul Fretes

An historical Analysis into black cinematography culture

In the 1970s, a variety of opportunities to African American actors, directors, writers, and producers slowly began to open. The films from this decade, whether they were action, comedy, drama, documentary, horror or romance, presented Black audiences with new and multifaceted depictions of the Black community. Overall, the ways how the motion picture industry has portrayed African Americans over the vast majority of the 20th century have evolved in a more positive direction. Nevertheless, these portrayals have continuously been fought with controversial images and stereotypical messages.

The complex history of black people in the motion picture industry, (mainly African Americans in the American industry) was, during the early years, confined to a demeaning stereotypical image of people of colour. Many films, especially during the first decades of the 20th century, showed a slightly nostalgic vision of the Southern American lifestyle. Such decision aimed to create a certain measure of reconciliation between the once separated North and South (in which the memories of the civil war were still fresh) by glorifying the image of the Old South and their “cause”. In these films, the African

An AD for “The Homesteader” (1919), a denominated Race Film Genre, targeted especially towards the minority audiences.

Source: unknown

American characters, and their image, were kept within their strong usual stereotype, portraying them as incompetent, child-like, hypersexualized and with a criminal behaviour, except for just a few companies. Some of these, owned by African Americans, were established with the sole intention of promoting an all coloured cast production in order to create a positive and diverse role for the African American actors.

During the first half of the 20th century (from

1910 until late 1940s), African Americans from the rural South began to migrate in masses into urban areas of the U.S.A., shifting the racial landscape that (white) Americans had created. Then, eventually, a momentum of Civil Rights Movement started to rise, bringing changes to mainstream Hollywood and marking a beginning on how black and white actors shared screen time in the 1950s.

Also, new productions of large projects featuring all-black cast began to emerge. Later, in the 1960s, this effort saw an increase, trying to push back the racial status quo and promoting greater cast integration and encouragement.

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Only in the 1970s did the opportunity of vari-

ety in the motion picture industry open to African American actors, directors, writers and producers. And thus a subgenre of exploitation emerged in the United States during the early 1970s: “Blaxploitation or Blacksploitation”. The films, although receiving backlash for stereotypical characters, were one of the first instances in which black characters and communities were the heroes and subjects of film and television, instead of being portrayed as sidekicks or victims of brutality. The main purpose was to target a black audience, specifically an urban black audience, but the subgenre’s audience appeal soon broadened across racial and ethnic lines.

This caused Hollywood to realise the potential profit available by expanding the audiences of Blaxploitation films across racial lines which, in time the genre allowed the rethinking of race relations. Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song (1971) is one of the notable Blaxploitation films, where the hero is raised among prostitutes and is arrested for a crime he did not commit. Also, Super Fly (1972), Blackula (1972) and Blackstein (1973) are key influences in this movement.

Blackula (1972)

Source: unknown

But has there been a movie where REAL black

culture and societies are exposed? Early this February (2018), Marvel’s new superhero movie, Black Panther, was released, causing both a huge cultural and box office phenomenon. The film tells the story of the breath-taking civilisation Wakanda,

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An Image from a blackface film “The Jazz Singer” (1927) Source: unknown

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where our hero, the heir to the throne, T’Challa (Black Panther) returns to assume his birthright.

But in the end, Black Panther is more than just a superhero movie; it is the celebration, acknowledgement and highlight of black culture’s vast, millenary but yet unknown journey.

For the creative production process of Black

Panther, the production designer, Hannah Beachers, asked herself the questions “What is it like to be African?”; “What fits perfectly into the story plot of our movie?”; “Was the nation of Wakanda formed by a union of tribes, mixing, adopting their traditions, aesthetics and cultural practices within their civilization, and creating a unique and marvellous society that can be found in today’s African countries?”. The film has also a scifi theme: “What if Africa development had been different?”, thus exploring the endless possibilities of what could’ve happened if the African nations had been hidden and protected through the centuries from slavery and colonialism, celebrating, for once in cinema history, a truly diverse socio-cultural black environment.

Characters of Black Panther (2018), where we can see the cultural African diversity in the characters’ identities and outfits designs Source: unknown

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Égle Puodžiūnaitė | 27 years old

Cristian Lupu | 25 years old

Staying in Greece for 1 year, until February 2019.

Staying in Greece for 1 year, until February 2019.

Favorite topics are travel, culture and eco life.

Favorite topics are travel, technology and miscellaneous.

Isabel Tootill | 24 years old

Oznur Coşar | 26 years old

Staying in Greece for 6 months until May.

Staying in Greece for 6 months, until August.

Favorite topics are culture, travel, History and Human Rights.

Favorite topics are culture, history and food.

Hande Yetkin | 22 years old

Laura Samuilytė | 21 years old

Staying in Greece for 10 months until​July.

Staying in Greece for 1 year, until February 2019.

Favorite topics are music, diving and photography.

Favorite topics are music, travel and sports.

Claudia Cornea | 25 years old

Tomás Cunha | 21 years old

Staying in Greece for 1 year, until February 2019.

Staying in Thessaloniki for 6 months, until May.

Favorite topics are filmmaking, travel and photography.

Favorite topics are cinema, music and photography.

Bar​ış​Yü​ksel | 27 years old

Ahmet Şahin | 23 years old

Staying in Greece for 10 months until July.

Staying in Greece for 6 months, until August.

Favorite topics are sociology, History and cinema.

Favorite topics are music, social issues and political issues.

Raul Fretes | 22 years old

Filip Grác | 29 years old

Staying in Greece for 6 months, until April.

Staying in Greece for 1 year, until January.

Favorite topics are travel, cinema and photography.

Favorite topics are culture, History and art.

General Directors: Editors: Aristodimos Paraschou Isabel Tootill Christian Cibba Baris Yuksel Raul Fretes Graphic Designer: Alexandros Tagaridis

Find us: www.balkanhotspot.org Usb_ngo.gr

The volunteers responsible for this publication are hosted in Greece in the framework of the European ERASMUS+ Programme, European Voluntary Service. This project has been funded with support from the European Commision. This publication [communication] reflects the views of only of the author, and the Commision can not be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.