Music and Society in Cyprus: British Colonialism and the Emergence of European Music Traditions

In this paper, I aim to examine a number of aspects of the musical culture of Greek Cypriots during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, focusing on the emergence of European art music and the consequent impact on the local music traditions. The paper will provide information about musical developments in Cyprus during a period that has not been previously explored, contributing to a better understanding of the subsequent evolution of musical culture on the island. Considering the social stratification of the time, I will examine the impact of European art music on particular Cypriot social classes of the clergy, the peasantry, the traditional urban elite and the newly created middle class. The main sources of the research presented here are products of the island's first urban printing press, which are kept at the Public Information Office and the Archive of the Archbishops of Cyprus.