Exhibition
From 1930 onwards, one can observe a significant change. Now music could be diffused through the new technologies available. The new developments in discography brought a change to the music world. In Greece, the new radio station that was established in 1938 helped in the most positive way. Of course, sheet music was still available and that continued for many years to come. The composers that culminate are Michalis Souyoul, Kostas Giannides, Spyros Ollandezos, Iosif Ritsiardis and others. New types of songs and music appear and are now vividly described as 'songs of wine and tavern'.
Moreover, from the ‘40s and during the German Occupation and Civil War years, the popularity of songs of all types deteriorates. Composers of that time, and especially those writing light music, had to move towards a new genre called “arhontorebetiko” which was a mixture of Rebetiko music but with lyrics and meanings that did not hesitate with the ones used in authentic Rebetiko, which were thought to be decadent.
During the next years and from 1950s onwards, one can see that light music (kantades, fox trot, tango music etc.) suffer a heavy blow and popular music separates in more than one branches. This means that types like: laika (urban popular music) and elafrolaika (light urban popular music where bouzouki is the primary instrument) are being introduced. Even art music composers venture to write these types of music, for example Mikis Theodorakis, Manos Hadjidakis and others.
