The sign said "Houdetsi" to the left, while the GPS was pointing that my route was straight ahead. I had nothing to do to this village, no-one was expecting me, no affairs that needed my attention.
I turned left anyway.
The last time I was here, it was 7 years ago and I was one of the 50.000 visitors that attended the 7th (and last as it turned out) Houdetsi Music Festival.
A festival of this size is a big event on its own.
A festival of this size on a Greek island (even if it is the biggest Greek island) is unique!
A festival of this size not only on an island but in a village with hardly 800 inhabitants, is phenomenal!
But what is truly mind-blowing is that it all happened thanks to the vision of one man and the passion of a small group of volunteers!
Four days, 67 concerts, 140 musicians from many different countries and thousands of visitors, created a unique celebration of music. All that based exclusively on volunteers, both in the organisation of the festival, as well as in the music playing and of course with no entrance fee!
The mastermind behind this extraordinary project that changed radically the character and the fame of this small village is Ross Daly.
Although of Irish descent, Ross Daly does not really fit into any particular ethnic stereotype given that his life has been spend in many different parts of the world and his home for the last 35 years is the island of Crete in Greece. Ross Daly, at a very early age, discovered that music was, in his own words, “the language of my dialogue with that which I perceive to be sacred”.
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I saw him drinking his evening coffee, as I entered the village and for a while I waffled over talking to him about the discontinuation of the festival or not. But I already knew that it was a difficult decision and it caused him a lot of frustration and hard feelings. And he looked so peaceful, sitting under that tree, that I didn't want to disturb him or bring forward any unpleasant memories. Anyway what needed to be said is written and published so I didn't see any point into making him repeat it.
I am copying the announcement (written in 2017) of “Labyrinth”, the Musical Workshop that he started 40 years ago and has written history in the world of music. It is very enlightening about what really happened and it might help you understand one thing or two about Greece.
The annual Houdetsi Festival first took place in 2010. It was organized by the Musical Workshop Labyrinth with the sole intent of sharing with the local community the exquisite music produced by the teachers and students of Labyrinth. All of the organization at the time was at a basically amateur level which was just sufficient to manage what was a relatively small festival which attracted between 4000 and 6000 visitors during its 4 day duration. The participation, especially of the youth of the village of Houdetsi, was more than merely impressive and the result was a four day celebration of rare musical idioms from various regions of the world in a truly magical atmosphere.
The generous gift of participation free of charge afforded us by world class musicians from Greece and abroad, coupled with the hard work of the organizing team who, although amateurs, performed like professionals resulted, in an exceptional event which even earned international acclaim, beyond the borders of Crete or Greece itself. Year after year the number of visitors drawn to the Houdetsi Festival increased rapidly resulting in last year's edition which was attended by upward of 50,000 people.
The basic organizational infrastructure of the Festival however remained essentially the same as that of 2010, despite the fact that many more musicians were coming to participate and the flow of visitors was increasing at an astaounding rate. Unfortunately however, the facilities of the festival (the concert venues, the toilets, the security infrastructure, etc.) all remained basically the same as those of the first years.
Clearly a festival of such a size as is the Houdetsi Festival in its current manifestation cannot rely on such limited facilities as are those currently available to it. Out of concern for the safety of all of the visitors who have embraced and supported it, as well as out of respect for all of the participants in the organization and execution of the festival who have brought it to such a level of excellence, we find ourselves obliged to cancel the organization of the festival for the summer of 2017. The aforementioned reasons for this cancellation are but a few of the many which indeed leave us with no other choice.
We are well aware of the fact that this decision will upset and disappoint many of our friends and visitors, but, believe us when we say that no one is more disappointed by this development than we ourselves who created the festival and who bear the responsibility for its organization.
If, at some time in the future, the Musical Workshop Labyrinth considers it to be appropriate (in accordance with our true goals) to once again organize an event such as the Houdetsi Festival or something along the same lines and of such dimensions, that will take place only with the full cooperation of all of the essential services and agencies such as can ensure the proper conditions for its safe and smooth transpiration.
The Musical Workshop Labyrinth however, will be very much alive and active in Houdetsi this summer, perhaps more so than ever, with dozens of concerts, seminars and other musical events especially chosen for the attentive and demanding audience which it is our proud privilege to host every year. More news about these events coming soon!
Musical Workshop Labyrinth
Society of Friends of the Musical Workshop Labyrinth
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The last pictures are from Labyrinth's garden. I first saw it full of people and wonderful music and the sight of the overgrown weeds as well as the padlock on the door looked so strange and kind of depressing in my eyes. But history can't be unwritten nor the wonderful work that has happened and is still happening here!
Because after all:
"Labyrinth is more than a musical workshop, it is a way of life through music…”
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In conclusion, I am glad I took this detour. I remembered a lot of nice moments, I found the excuse to read a little more about events that I have actually live but not fully comprehend at the time and the pictures are not too bad either :)
Unless stated otherwise, all the pictures and the words are mine.
Thank you for reading and if you want to know more about me you can check out my introduction post.
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