The Evolution of Rock Festivals in Greece

Abstract

There is a steady growth of music festivals that has continuously occurred within the last thirty years, and this has changed the structure of the international cultural market. Nowadays, selling recorded products does not make large profits and music festivals became the vitalsupporters of the music industry. This paper focuses on presenting how the growth of rock festivals introduced to Greek society a new kind of entertainment quite different from the traditional festivities of the region and how this practice supports tourism. Indeed, some great festivals are created with the international market in mind and are based on specialized tourism management practices. This study, after considering some aspects concerning the interaction between global and local music culture, provides a brief historical framework of the rock festivals. It constitutes basically a general review presenting the evolution of this imported type of entertainment in Greece, and it reveals possible commonalities between the traditional and the new forms of festivities. Although there are significant differences between Panygiri which is the old traditional Greek festivity and the rock festival, it seems that some fundamental elements in those social phenomena such as attracting tourism and uniting people always remain the same.