[Mikis Theodorakis, who began his political life as a partisan in
Greek resistance, remained a staunch opponent of imperialist
aggression throughout his life. His musical compositions contributed
to the cultural revolution in Greece. ] [[link removed]]

MIKIS THEODORAKIS: A LIFE OF MUSIC AND RESISTANCE  
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Muhammed Shabeer
September 3, 2021
Peoples Dispatch
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_ Mikis Theodorakis, who began his political life as a partisan in
Greek resistance, remained a staunch opponent of imperialist
aggression throughout his life. His musical compositions contributed
to the cultural revolution in Greece. _

, Photo: 902.gr

 

_“Now at the end of my life, at the time of reckoning, the details
fade from my mind and remain the big picture. So I see that my most
critical, strong and mature years were spent under the banner of the
KKE. That is why I want to leave this world as a communist”._

— From the personal letter by Mikis Theodorakis sent to Dimitris
Koutsoumbas, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE),
dated October 5, 2020.

On Thursday, September 2, renowned Greek composer and political
activist Michail “Mikis” Theodorakis died in Athens at 96 of
cardiopulmonary arrest. Mikis was a legendary composer and was active
in the Greek resistance (1941–1944) during World War II and the
resistance against the Greek military junta (1967-74). 

Theodorakis’ works were censored for his political views and
activities. He was jailed, tortured, and forced into exile. He was
associated with the Greek left for most of his life and was elected to
the Greek parliament several times, twice from the leftist/communist
platforms. Throughout his life, he opposed imperialism, fought for
peace and the cause of the working class. He has also received many
international honors, including the Lenin peace prize. 

Greece will mark three days of mourning to honor the life and career
of Mikis Theodorakis. Progressive sections in Greece and abroad,
including the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) and the Progressive
Party of Working People (AKEL), condoled his death.

MUSIC IN THE KEY OF STRUGGLE

Born in Chios, Theodorakis was interested in music from an early age
and took his first lessons in Patras and Pyrgos. In the 1940s, he
studied at the Athens Conservatoire. He conducted his first concert at
the age of seventeen. He founded his first orchestra while in Crete
and became the head of the Chania Music School. Theodorakis and his
wife  Myrto Altinoglou moved to Paris in the 50s, studying and
working more on music.

Mikis Theodorakis’ association with politics started in Athens in
1943 and was closely intertwined with his musical work. He became a
member of the Greek People’s Liberation Army (ELAS), the military
wing of the left-wing National Liberation Front (EAM), which resisted
the axis forces in Greece during World War II. During the Greek Civil
War, he was arrested, exiled to Icaria and Makronisos, and was
brutally tortured. Following his return from Paris, outraged by the
killing of leftist MP Grigoris Lambrakis by far-right extremists in
1963, Theodorakis formed Lambrakis Democratic Youth and was elected to
Greek Parliament in 1964 from the United Democratic Left panel. 

At this moment, his compositions based on poems brought about a
cultural revolution in the country. He developed his “metasymphonic
music” by mixing the symphonic elements with popular songs, western
symphonic orchestra, and popular Greek instruments. He founded the
Little Orchestra of Athens and the Musical Society of Piraeus and
organized many concerts in Greece. 

He gave the score for the film _Zorba the Greek_ in 1964. Around the
time, Mikis also composed the renowned “Mauthausen Trilogy,” also
known as “The Ballad of Mauthausen,” based on poems on the
holocaust written by Greek poet Iakovos Kambanellis. Critics call it
Theodorakis’ best work ever.

Mikis Theodorakis during a concert at the Panionios Stadium in 1975.
Photo: 902.gr

When the military junta came to power in 1967, Theodorakis went
underground and organized the Patriotic Front. In response, the Greek
military junta banned his works and proceeded to arrest Theodorakis
and imprisoned him. In 1968, Mikis and his family were brought to
Zatouna, and the junta interned him at the Oropos concentration camp.
However, international pressure by famous artists and politicians
mounted, and forced the Greek authorities to allow them to leave the
country in 1970. 

While in exile (1970-74), Mikis traveled extensively to campaign
against the Greek military junta. He met many leaders from the
developing world during this period, including Salvador Allende, Gamal
Abdul Nasser, Tito, Olof Palme, and Yasser Arafat.

He composed political songs and performed worldwide to raise
international public opinion against the Greek military junta. During
this period, he also gave music to Pablo Neruda’s _Canto
General_ and Yiannis Ritsos’s _Eighteen Short Songs of the Bitter
Motherland_. In 1974, he returned to Greece and focused on more
symphonic compositions and operas during the 80s and 90s. He also
served as the General Musical Director of the Choir and the two
Orchestras of the Hellenic State Radio (ERT).

Upon his return to Greece in 1974, Mikis became active again in Greek
politics in close association with the Communist Party of Greece
(KKE). He was elected again to the Greek parliament in 1981 and 1989
(with the backing of New Democracy (ND). He also served as a Minister
(1990-1992) in the cabinet of Konstantinos Mitsotakis.

Mikis Theodorakis and Giannis Ritsos at the 4th KNE-Odigits Festival
in Peristeri. Photo: 902.gr

Throughout his life, Mikis remained a staunch opponent of Israel’s
occupation of Palestine and helped compose the Palestinian national
anthem. He vociferously criticized the NATO-led bombing of Yugoslavia
in 1999 and the US aggression on Iraq. Mikis extensively campaigned
for Greece-Turkey friendship, peace and unity in the ethnically
divided island of Cyprus. He criticized the Greek government for the
loan debt accrued from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

On September 2, the central committee of the Communist Party of Greece
(KKE) said that “impulsive, inspired and ignited by the passion of
offering to the people, Theodorakis managed to fit in his majestic
work the whole epic of the popular struggle of the 20th century in our
country. After all, he was part of this epic.”

“His music broke the borders of the country, as its language has the
universality of the common sufferings, the hopes, the visions that are
shared by all the peoples, all the humble ones of the earth,” added
the KKE.

The Progressive Party of Working People (AKEL) of Cyprus bid farewell
to Mikis, saying that “Mikis Theodorakis’s relationship with
Cyprus was special and in every test of the Cypriot people he gave us
a thunderous presence, supporting our struggle in every way he
could.”

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