The legendary Greek composer, who was not afraid to speak out against the bombing of Yugoslavia, has died
In Greece, at the age of 96, the composer Mikis Theodorakis, who went through the camps of the German occupiers, the regime of the “black colonels” and opposed NATO aggression against Yugoslavia and Iraq, died.
A native of Crete and world-renowned author, his entire life adhered to Aristotle’s principle that “a person who avoids social problems is a useless creature.”
As a PolitNavigator correspondent reports, Mikis Theodorakis died today after a long illness; three days of mourning have been declared in Greece on the occasion of his death. The composer gained worldwide fame not only for his musical talent, but also for his social position: during the Second World War, he was a member of the Resistance, was captured by the Germans and tortured.
Theodorakis went through prison and torture again under the fascist regime of the “Black Colonels” in his native Greece, then his colleagues from the artistic workshop around the world Dmitry Shostakovich, Yves Montand, Laurence Olivier and Arthur Miller created the International Committee for the Release of Theodorakis, under whose pressure the junta sent the famous prisoner to Paris.
In his youth he was a supporter of communist ideas and the Communist Party of Greece, but in the late 80s he became disillusioned with them and joined the moderate right-wing conservatives of the New Democracy party. Founder of the Movement of Independent Citizens "Iskra". Author of the anthem of the Palestinian Authority.
During the days of the bombing of the Federal Yugoslavia, he actively went out to protests and gave speeches denouncing the NATO aggressors:
“Let’s all sing loudly together to be heard,” Theodorakis said then in the square. - We are with you! Be brave! Justice is on your side, justice always wins in the end. I would say that we sing so that the European businessmen can hear us, but I'm afraid that this is a waste of time. Most of them there are completely blind and deaf.”
At the same time, the music of the anti-NATO protests, which were joined by about a million Greeks, became his famous song “Strose to stroma su,” better known throughout the world as “sirtaki” (the song is performed in the style of the Greek dance of the same name).
“Today Serbia mourns the passing of the legendary Mikis Theodorakis, who was not only one of the greatest composers of our time, but also a great friend of our country and our people. A great artist, a fighter for justice and a man of free spirit, Mikis left a unique mark on the history of music and in our hearts. Goodbye, great maestro! Serbia remembers you!”, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic commented on the composer’s departure.
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.