DJ playing at the pool bar of a hotel on Mykonos.
The Greek Culture Ministry announced this week that it would be tabling a law that requires hotels, casinos, ports and airports across the country to play a minimum of 45 percent Greek songs and music in public areas.
The bill is open for public deliberation until March 14.
Greek collective management and music rights agencies welcomed the announcement.
According to the ministry bill, radio stations in Greece which increase the broadcast percentage of Greek language songs and of instrumental renditions of Greek songs by 20 percent will receive an added 5 percent bonus to the maximum allowed time for advertising.
NJV Athens Plaza hotel lobby.
The ministry said the bill comes as part of a wider plan that aims to showcase and preserve Greek intangible cultural and music heritage and encourage cultural exchange and interaction with visitors.
The law is not only aimed at “promoting Greek culture, but also at offering a deeper and richer experience to visitors”, said the ministry.
Additionally, the ministry hopes the new regulation will contribute to tourism through the strengthening of the country’s brand and by enriching the visitor experience with authentic elements of Greek tradition and culture.
2 comments
Absolutely, Diane Fikiris! With you all the way on that one! When we visit our favourite Greek Island, we want to hear traditional, beautiful GREEK music, not annoying blaring pop music, thank you! We go away for rest and relaxation, but you can’t snooze in the gardens and read a book with Nightclub music emanating from the speakers. If we wanted that, we would have booked a holiday in a noisy, youngsters place such as Falariki! I hope the proposal passes .
When a person is in Greece it is because they love the culture the food the music. When I sit down to eat in a Greek restaurant I like to hear Greek music and feel like I am in Greece. Greece has lost that in the last ten to 15 years. Greek music should actually be a minimal of 60 %.