Markos Vamvakaris

About Markos Vamvakaris

Known as the patriarch of rebetiko, Vamvakaris was born on Syros and fled to Piraeus at age twelve where he taught himself bouzouki. His raw, emotive vocal style and virtuosic bouzouki playing defined the sound of early rebetiko. He recorded hundreds of songs that became the foundation of Greece's urban folk tradition.