Tsamikos

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article or section needs to be wikified to meet Wikipedia's quality standards.
Please help improve this article with relevant internal links. (August 2007)

Yiorgos Roumbis in his book ELLINIKOI HOROI Greek Dances states that the Tsamikos dance is one of the most impressive male folk dances. It is considered, just like the Kalamatianos to be a Pan-Hellenic dance. The name of the dance is derived from regional area of Tsamouria in Epirus (Nomos Thesprotias). The dance is also called Kleftikos cause it was danced by the Kleftes during the Turkish Occupation of Greece. Depending on the region the Tsamikos can be danced with 8, 10, 12, 14 or 16 steps.^[1]In many regions the leader improvises within the dance and can also dance 'ston topo' (on the spot).The entire dance is an expression of bravery and the desire to win. The music rhythm of the Tsamikos is 3/4.

Example video of dance improvization: http://www.youtube.com/v/6iEuX2heUCg&rel=1