From bagpipes to bouzouki – a small glimpse into the history of Greek folk instruments from the permanent exhibition at the museum in Plaka, Athens.
We visited the Museum of Greek Folk Instruments – a small but very charming and truly fascinating museum, housed in a beautifully restored 19th-century building in the heart of Plaka. Hundreds of instruments and related materials are preserved and displayed here, telling the story of Greece’s rich musical tradition – from antiquity to the present. The museum also promotes research, education, and the dissemination of traditional Greek music in Greece and internationally.
The museum is housed in a beautifully restored neoclassical building from 1840, built by General Georgios Lassanis (1793–1870), freedom fighter, writer, and minister during Greece’s struggle for independence. Today, the building holds one of the country’s most important collections of traditional musical instruments and serves as a national center for ethnomusicological research and public education.
Greek folk instruments – a selection
Here, we present a selection of instruments from the museum’s permanent exhibition – a mix of well-known classics and lesser-documented instruments from the history of Greek music.
Tambourás – a string instrument with deep historical roots
The tambourás belongs to a family of long-necked lutes with roots in ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt. In classical Greece, this type of instrument was known as the pandoura, and in later periods, it lived on under various names and forms – such as tambourás, sázi, bouzouki, bağlama, and tambur. In Greece, the tambourás has played an important role in traditional music and is seen as a predecessor to the bouzouki and other instruments associated with the world of rebetiko.
Baglamas made from tortoise shell
The small baglamas is closely related to the bouzouki and is widely used in rebetiko music. Some older versions were made from tortoise shell – an example of how simple, natural materials were used to create instruments with a unique sound and character.
Kementzes – the Pontic lyra
The leading folk instrument among Greeks from Pontos – the historical region along the southern coast of the Black Sea – and among Pontic Greeks who arrived in Greece during the refugee movements of the 20th century. The small bridge allows the bow to play on two strings at once, creating the distinctive polyphonic sound that characterizes the Pontic musical tradition.
Gáida – the Greek bagpipe
The gáida is a traditional wind instrument played in many parts of Greece – from Thrace and Macedonia to the islands and Crete, where it is also known as tsambouna, touloumi, or askavlos. With its raw yet ornate sound, it was often played at dances and celebrations, though in many regions, it was gradually replaced by the clarinet during the 20th century.
Everyday rhythms
Improvised percussion art In Greek folk tradition, everyday objects like wooden spoons, drinking glasses, and kombolói (worry beads) have often been used as rhythm instruments – especially during spontaneous music gatherings and celebrations. A living expression of rhythm found in the body, the hands, and whatever happens to be within reach.
The museum for Greek folk instruments
The museum holds around 600 Greek musical instruments from the past 300 years – and many more are preserved in the museum’s storage collection, inaccessible to the public but a treasure trove for researchers and ethnomusicologists.
In addition to the instruments we’ve highlighted in this post, the permanent exhibition offers a rich palette of traditional instruments – some well-known, others more unexpected. Here, you can discover everything from bells and bagpipes to handcrafted lyres, flutes, and percussion instruments, among others.
- Lyres – from various parts of Greece, including the Cretan lyra
- Flutes and wind instruments – such as flogera, souravli, and the powerful zournás
- Percussion – including toumpeléki (hand drum), ntefi (tambourine), and various types of koudounia (bells)
- Lutes – such as laouto, oud, bouzouki, and baglamas
- Bagpipes – under names like áskavlos or tsambouna, depending on the region
- Rarer instruments – like lalítsa, a small traditional folk flute
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The exhibition – more than just instruments
The exhibition offers more than just a visual overview of the instruments’ forms and materials – it also provides an audible one, through interactive stations and selected sound samples. It’s a place where you can quite literally hear the resonance of history.
The Museum of Greek Folk Instruments is also a living archive of cultural experience, movement, and sound. For anyone curious about Greece’s musical heritage or interested in how tradition and craftsmanship continue to evolve, the museum offers a rare depth. And even though many of these instruments are now played in different contexts – or not at all – they still bear witness to a deep human urge to create, to find rhythm, and to express through music, in everyday life as well as in celebration.
This post is the first in a series on Greek folk instruments here on Expedition Greece. In the coming months, we’ll explore the history and contemporary use of these instruments in more detail – both here on the blog and out in the field. More encounters, voices, and sounds await.