“Crete is an island where many people from different countries, cultures and religions have lived and have left their traces. So isn’t music in Crete today a product of all these mixtures and cultural elements?” Dr. Maria Hnaraki's self-posed question is answered in the affirmative as the author takes the reader on a journey of discovery through the five steps - or five chapters - of this book, constructed in the spirit of the traditional pendozalis five-step dance.

Writing in an intensely personal style, bringing into her narrative gods and heroes from Greek mythology and literature as well as present-day musicians and performers, Hnaraki succeeds in evoking both the rich history and the vibrant present of Cretan music.

[Excerpt from the text on the back cover of the edition]