Dance of the Akritai - Epic Byzantine Music

Painting by Dimitris Skourtelis, please check out more of his wonderful work here: You can buy this song and the rest of my music here: Music by Farya Faraji. Please note that this isn’t reconstructed Byzantine music; it’s modern Greek music with a Byzantine theme (the theme in this case being the Anatolic Theme, please laugh it’s a good pun). I was inspired to write an instrumental piece about the Akritai, the border guards of the Byzantine Empire from the 9th to 11th centuries who defended the empire’s borders in Anatolia against the enemy states of the Middle-East. With this one, I was more interested in providing a sense of realistic atmosphere and immersion than just music--I wanted to evoke some idea of the Akritai dancing together in their barracks, drinking and feasting after a hard day of battle on the soil of Anatolia. The Akritai formed the inspiration behind the Akritic song