adminA Century’s Journey in Anatolian Music
A female trio from Greece, a male trio from Anatolia, two sides from the border and a common background. Peoples separated by the vicissitudes of 20th century history.
In 1923, the peace Treaty of Lausanne settled the borders of the modern Turkey. It culminated the exchange of population: the purpose was to change the ethnic Greek community living in Turkey for the ethnic Turkish community living in Greece.
The escape of Christian population from Anatolia had been developing in a traumatic way for several years already. The Treaty meant the largest mass population swap up to that time. It affected 1.5 million people, almost a million referred by the Turks. The new arrivals represented an overnight increase of 20 % of Greece’s population of around five million.
Villagers from Asia Minor who escaped to the island of Chios in 1922 after the fire of Izmir, that completely destroyed the Greek and Armenian quarters of the city. Picture of the collection of the Library of the Congress.
1923, a refugee camp for Pontian Greeks arriving from Anatolia to Thessaloniki. Public domain.
“Because of the Greek nation’s inability to respond to millions of new arrivals, foreign relief agencies such as the American Red Cross, the American Women’s Hospitals and the Near East Relief Association mobilized. The agencies set up tent cities in parks around ancient temples and away from objecting residents.” Gregory Pappas, Pappaspost.com.
A century has passed. But the thread that connects the music of Greeks and Anatolian peoples has not vanished. This project celebrates a common background, in a turbulent time, in which music creates new shared spaces.
