Being Bimusical in the Era of Globalization: The Case of Four Folk Brass Musicians of Younger Generation in Greece

Brass instruments hold a central place in various folk music traditions of Greece. Although foreign to Greek music, these instruments began being introduced to specific regions (e.g., Central and Western Macedonia, Lesvos Island) in the mid-19th century. Interestingly, despite their “foreign western origin,” locals today consider them an integral part of their cultural identity. In this paper, we examine the profiles of four young musicians (trumpet, trombone, euphonium, and tuba performers) who are professionally engaged in traditional music. The qualitative data collected through semi-structured interviews with the participants highlight the significant impact of globalization and technology on the development of a bimusical profile. All four participants demonstrated remarkable comfort in playing various types of music (e.g., classical music, jazz) beyond the traditional folk music of their homeland. In addition, it is worth noting the importance they attributed to technology—particularly audio recording tools—as a means of developing their musicality. These tools can be considered as instruments of “secondary orality,” adopting Walter Ong’s term.