Composer and songwriter Mikis Theodorakis was born in 1925 on Chios island. His first compositions for voice, violin and piano were written at the end of the 1930s.
There were chamber music concerts of his compositions between 1940 and 1942 in Tripolis (Peloponnese county) where Theodorakis conducted the church choir.
In 1942 he moved to Athens and studied at the Conservatory. Theodorakis was engaged in the Resistance against Italian and German occupation. He was arrested during the civil war and deported in 1947, until 1949.
From 1950 to 1953 Theodorakis became a music critic for magazines and was also a percussionist at the Opera of Athens. During this period he began to perform regularly his classical compositions.
In 1954 Therodorakis expanded his musical studies in Paris, at the Conservatory, with Olivier Messiaen. He studied with Messiaen until 1960.
Theodorakis received a Gold medal in 1957, at the Moscow Composition Competition, for his ‘Suite No.1.’ The president of the Jury was D. Shostakovitch.
In 1959 Theodorakis explored the Theoretical analysis of the Tetrachord system. He also had an Expose with Jannis Xenakis for the ‘Reorganization of Greek Music.’ That same year he presented Antigone, a ballet musical work, in Covent Garden, London, with Margot Fonteyn, Rudolf Nurejev. Darius Milhaus suggested him for the Copley Music Prize as best European composer in 1959. He won.
Theodorakis decided to return to Greece in 1960, leaving the Paris classical scene. In Athens he published his folk song cycle Epitaph in cooperation with rebetiko musicians. He composed music for other Greek poets like Elytis, Seferis, and worked out a metasymphonic concept with oratorios like Axion Esti (1960).
In the early 1960s he started writing music for films and movies like Zorba The Greek (1964), The Trojan Woman (1971), Z (1969) and many others.
In 1962 Thodorakis founded the Little Athens Orchestra. He conducted concerts throughout Greece with classical music for the people.
From 1964 through 1967 he became a delegate of the left movement party in Parliament and Chairman of the Lambrakis Youth Organization, the biggest political organization in Greece.
Mikis Theodorakis was awarded the Sibelius Prize for his complete works by the International Institute of Music in London in 1965. One of the members of the jury was Pablo Casals.
The military regime banned Theodorakis’ music in 1967. After being arrested, he was exiled to Zatuna.
In 1970 he was liberated and became the founder and chairman of the Patriotic Liberation Front to unite all anti-dictatorial forces against the military junta.
Until 1974, when democracy returned to Greece, he performed more than 1000 concerts all over the world with orchestra and singers like Maria Farandouri – dedicated to his fight for democracy in Greece.
In 1974 Theodorakis conducted his oratorio Canto General in Athens. During the 1970s Theodorakis was involved in politics as an Independent Leftist. In 1978 he began his cooperation with the Communists Party, from which he separated in 1986.
Theodorakis returned to symphonic works in 1980 and presented the following works: 3rd Symphony, Sadduzaer Passion, Opera Medea (1991, Bilbao), Canto Olimpico (1992, Barcelona) and Opera Elektra (Luxembourg 1995).
In 1987 Theodorakis founded the Society for Greek and Turkish Friendship together with Zülfü Livaneli.
He ran as an independent candidate within the conservative New Democracy party in 1989 and helped establish a large coalition between conservatives, socialists and leftists. In 1990 he was elected as a delegate to the parliament and became a government minister under Konstantin Mitsotakis, where he fought against drugs and terrorism and for better relations between Greece and Turkey.
In 1990 he conducted four metasymphonic compositions (Epiphania) in 40 European cities and after 20 years he recorded his most successful songs for the first time.
Theodorakis left the government in 1992.
Often, he conducts his classical compositions in many parts of the world.
Theodorakis’ compositional work contains approx. 1000 songs and about 100 great compositions of symphony, theater and ballet, opera and oratorios.
Biographical information originally compiled by Asteridis Kutulas. Edited by Angel Romero
Discography:
Mikis Theodorakis & Zülfü Livaneli — Together (Tropical)
Mikis Theodorakis — First Symphony & Adagio (Wergo/Schott)
Maria Farantouri — Poetica (Songs by Theodorakis) (Peregrina)
Mikis Theodorakis — Mikis (Peregrina)
Mikis Theodorakis — Symphony No. 4 (Wergo/Schott)
Maria Farantouri — Asmata (Songs by Theodorakis) (Peregrina)
Mikis Theodorakis — Symphony No. 7 (Wergo/Schott)
Mikis Theodorakis — Requiem: For soloists, choir and symphonic orchestra (Wergo/Schott)
Mikis Theodorakis — Symphonietta & Etat de Siege (Wergo/Schott)
Maria Farantouri & Rainer Kirchmann — Sun & Time: Songs by Theodorakis (Lyra)
Mikis Theodorakis — Mauthausen Trilogy: In Greek, Hebrew and English (Plaene)
Mikis Theodorakis — Carnaval — Raven (for mezzo and symphonic orchestra) (Wergo/Schott)
Mikis Theodorakis — Resistance (historic recordings) (Wergo/Schott)
Mikis Theodorakis — First Songs (Wergo/Schott)
Mikis Theodorakis — Antigone/Medea/Electra (3-Opera Box) (Wergo/Schott)
Mikis Theodorakis — The Metamorphosis of Dionysus (Opera) (Wergo/Schott)
Mikis Theodorakis — Rhapsodies for Cello and Guitar (Wergo/Schott)
Mikis Theodorakis — East of the Aegean (for cello and piano) (Wergo/Schott)
Mikis Theodorakis & Francesco Diaz — Timeless (Wormland White)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.
