Attending the Houdetsi Festival

The annual Houdetsi Festival first took place in 2010. It was organized by the Musical Workshop Labyrinth with the sole intent of sharing with the local community the exquisite music produced by the teachers and students of Labyrinth. All of the organization at the time was at a basically amateur level which was just sufficient to manage what was a relatively small festival which attracted between 4000 and 6000 visitors during its 4 day duration. The participation, especially of the youth of the village of Houdetsi, was more than merely impressive and the result was a four day celebration of rare musical idioms from various regions of the world in a truly magical atmosphere. Houdetsi Festival is a 4 day celebration of music, food and art that takes place in the little village of Houdetsi located 23 klm due south of Heraklion, on the island of Crete.

The first two editions (2010, 2011) attracted more than 5,000 spectators each year. In 2012 more than 15,000 people from all over the world attended the festival!

Every night from 21:00 till the morning there are concerts on five stages in the village. The Crafts Market starts every evening at 19:00 and the Luthiers Exhibition is open all day.

Also you can visit the Labyrinth’s Musical Workshop instruments’ exhibition all day.

All the events are free for the public!

Houdetsi Village, just 10 Km from Ktima Mantilari, has been  an international attraction for musicians since 2002 as Labyrinth Musical Workshop organizes seminars and master classes with musicians from all over the world for the last 10 years. Houdetsi Festival  as well as Labyrinth Musical Workshop’s activities are an initiative of Ross Daly who is also the artistic director of both.

A few words from the Artistic Director:

“This year’s Houdetsi Festival, as all of the previous editions in previous years, relies entirely on the spirit of volunteer work on the part of all of the illustrious musicians who will be participating, as well as on the part of all of the many people, each in his own way, who participate in the organizational aspects of the festival. We are deeply grateful to all of them as we clearly recognize that it is due to their efforts that this festival exists.

For us here at the Musical Workshop Labyrinth, it is a recognized and established fact that the meeting of different people from different origins, each bringing with him something special and unique is the essential requisite for the birth of the new and the renewal of the old. When such meetings take place, frequently the new creation as a whole surpasses the sum of its parts. An invisible but decisive element is at work which is none other than the spirit of creativity itself. A spirit which is available to all, each according to his/her nature, but controllable by none. It is from these meetings of different peoples and different cultures that we at Labyrinth are constantly learning and enriching our lives and it is our desire, through the means of the Houdetsi Festival, to share this magical experience with our neighbors as well as with our visitors from far and near.”

Ross Daly