Synopsis

Greece developed a rich array of traditional, popular, and art music, which diasporic Greeks took with them. In Greek American communities, music has been an essential component—linking the past to the present, the distant to the near, and bonding members with an embrace of memories and narratives.

From 1896-1942, an estimated 2,000 recordings were made in America, and thousands have since appeared. They encompass traditional music from all regions, and emerging urban genres, stylistic changes, and songs of social commentary.  This talk profiles the scope, practice, and development of Greek music in America with attention to its relationship to ethnic identity.

Bio

Tina Bucuvalas is Director of Florida Cultural Resources, Inc., the President of the Greektown Preservation & Heritage Association and has held various curator roles over the years in Florida.Bucuvalas is the author, co-author, or editor of Greek Music in America (2019), Greeks in Tarpon Springs (2016), The Florida Folklife Reader (2011), Just Above the Water: Florida Folk Art (2004), and South Florida Folklife (1994). She is currently working on an ethnohistorical book about the largely Greek-led international sponge trade. She also has published dozens of essays and curated many exhibits. 

Bucuvalas conducted extensive fieldwork over several decades with most groups in Florida, as well as with Native Americans in Arizona; ranchers in Wyoming; various groups in Maine, California, New Jersey; Isthmus Zapotec in Mexico; and sponge workers in Cuba, the Bahamas, Greece, Australia, and Turkey. She holds a PhD in Folklore from Indiana University and an MA in Folklore & Mythology from UCLA.

How to Participate

This is an online-only event, so please join us on YouTube or Facebook.

You don't need an account with either of these services to just watch the event, but you do need one if you want to participate in the Live Q&A.

At the end of the lecturer's presentation, we ask our viewers to submit their written questions through the comment or chat function of Facebook or YouTube (you'll need to have an account with that service to be allowed to comment).

We then select and submit a number of your questions to our guest.

We look forward to your insightful participation.