ABSTRACT
The Ionian islands, which were never under Ottoman domination, had enjoyed a rich musical life as a result of cultural contact with Italy. The Ionian islands were occupied by the Venetians, the French and the English. The composers from these islands wrote operas to Italian librettos usually performed by Italian companies, and became the first Greek composers following the integration of the Ionian islands with mainland Greece. The turn of the twentieth century saw an intellectual revival, resulting from a cultural and artistic influx from western Europe and the rise of national self-awareness, and for the first time mainland Greek composers consciously attempted to establish a national musical identity. It was at this time of considerable political, social and cultural change that Nikos Skalkottas was born into a working-class family, albeit a musical one. His great-grandfather Alekos was a folk singer and violinist from the Cycladian island of Tinos.
