The seminar will focus on different musical styles of Crete, exploring techniques, rhythmology, and exercises based on the percussion instruments found in the musical tradition of the southeastern Aegean. Through the composition and orchestration of rhythmic patterns, as well as the understanding of the relationship between the rhythmic and melodic cycle and dance, the accompanying role of percussion will be studied. The seminar will also examine the presence of percussion instruments in combination with other solo instruments. Western notation and oral rhythmic systems will be used during the course. Instruments: daouli/tumpaki, toubeleki, bendir, stamna.
Haris Bakas _ Traditional Percussion in the Music of Crete and the Aegean
Type of Seminar: Instrumental-centered (Cretan drum/toubaki, toubeleki, bendir, stamna)
Participant Level: All levels
Sheet Music Reading: Not required
Teaching Hours: 5-6 hours/day
Haris Bakas was born in Heraklion, Crete, in 1984. In 2007, he graduated from the Department of Sociology at the University of Crete. His musical journey started with drums (drum set) under the guidance of teacher Vaggelis Tsagkarakis. At the same time, he specialized in the technique of Iranian and Greek music traditions through various seminars at the “Labyrinth” Music Workshop with teachers such as Pedram Khavarzamini, Zohar Fresco, Vaggelis Karipis, and Giannis Papatzanis. Over the past decade, he has been systematically involved in Greek folk music traditions and traditional percussion instruments found in the Hellenic and Eurasian regions (tombak, bendir, stamna, daoulaki, toubeleki).
He has collaborated with important musicians such as Giorgis Xylouris (Psarogiorgis), Kostis Abyssinos, Ross Daly, Kelly Thoma, Giorgis Manolakakis, Dimitris Sgouros, Maria Kotti, Michalis Staurakakis (Tatakis), Giorgos Zacharioudakis, Zacharis Spyridakis, and Stelios Petrakis.
He is a member of the music group "Agniares" along with Haris Panagiotakis and Giorgos Psaraki and co-creator of the album “Spring Weather.”
He is also a member of the group "Anakate Ntounia," which experiments with the relationship between Greek and African music traditions. He participated in the album "Reformation Project" by composer Hector Kyriakou.
Together with Michalis Kontaxakis, they created the music duo "Thines" and their eponymous album.
He participated in the live recording at Kapetaniána by Nikοs and Antonis Xylouris.
He participated in the traditional orchestra of composer Kyriakos Eleftheriades.
Through his collaborations with various artists, he incorporates Cretan traditional percussion instruments into Greek folk music, as well as percussion from other musical traditions.
Since 2024, he has been a member and percussion team leader of the Cretan ensemble "Idiorrhythmo" under the direction of composer Antonis Leontidis.
For seven consecutive years, he worked as an instructor in teaching rhythm as an educational tool in the program "The Art of Rhythm in Education" implemented by the Department of Philology at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Crete.