Global Greek World: The One and Only Mikis Theodorakis: Our Honorary Global Greek of the Year 2012

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

The One and Only Mikis Theodorakis: Our Honorary Global Greek of the Year 2012

No one deserves the title of Honorary Global Greek of the Year more than our wonderful Mikis Theodorakis!

Mikis Theodorakis
Greece's Legendary Composer is our Honorary Global Greek of the Year

What can we say about Greece's national composer, renowned songwriter and composer, Mikis Theodorakis, that hasn't already been said 1000 times at least?

This amazingly creative and inspiring man is a living legend and an integral part of the history of Modern Greece. With his incredible music he has left an indelible mark on Greece and her people, both in Greece and around the world.

A highly political persona who became a legend for his efforts and resistance during the Second World War and his fight for democracy during the civil war and the 7 year military dictatorship, for which he was rewarded with many periods in exile, on Makronissos, in Zatouna and others, Mikis continues to this day to exert influence in the political arena, even making plans for his own political movement in the next elections.

Miki talks and we all listen...

Present at the Athens premiere of a documentary on his life Mikis Theodorakis, The Man, the Genius, the Legend by Greek Australian Eleni Evangel, in Athens in April 2010, Mikis took the microphone to talk to us about his life but also to passionately denounce the calling in of the IMF/EU/ECB Troika assistance saying that Greece should have maintained its dignity and taken all the measures necessary by itself.

Miki is above all a creator of beautiful music with thousands of melodies in his 'library'. With more than a thousand songs and song-cycles to his credit, Mikis melodies have become part of the heritage of Greek music.
He was one of the first to put Greek poetry to music including the works of Nobel Prize winners Odysseus Elytis and George Seferis, thus bringing poetry to the people as he often says.
His repertoire includes Symphonic works, chamber music, cantatas and oratorios, hymns, ballets, operas, music for theatrical productions, classical tragedies, modern plays and many popular film scores, including the much acclaimed Zorba the Greek, Z, Phaedra and Serpico.

A small country, an enormous cultural heritage...
Miki with his own Zorba, Anthony Quinn

A small country, an enormous cultural heritage...
Did you say Dance?
Nikos Kazantzakis' Immortal Zorba

We would like to share with you a statement that Miki, still charismatic and a visionary at the age of 86, Greece's greatest living composer, made recently:

His thoughts on how he sees Greece in the world today.... Miki's vision for Greece is to take its rightful place in the world as a
Switzerland of Culture and Peace, a cultural oasis for Europe...

«Στο σηµείο αυτό θα ήθελα να σας µιλήσω για κάτι που πιστεύω ότι θα έλυνε το πρόβληµα της εθνικής µας ασφάλειας µια για πάντα: την Ιδέα της Ουδετερότητας. Με άλλα λόγια, να γίνει η Ελλάδα η Ελβετία του Πολιτισµού και της Ειρήνης. Με όπλα µας την ιστορία µας, τη συνεισφορά µας στον πολιτισµό και την πρόσφατη συµµετοχή µας στη συντριβή του φασισµού, είναι δυνατόν να κάνουµε το µεγάλο αυτό όραµα πραγµατικότητα. Με την προϋπόθεση βέβαια ότι όλοι οι Ελληνες µέσα και έξω από τη χώρα θα προσπαθήσουµε να πείσουµε τον ΟΗΕ (και φυσικά τις µεγάλες δυνάµεις) ότι η ύπαρξή µας ως τόπου συνάντησης των πολιτισµών και τόπου επίλυσης διαφορών κάτω από τη σκιά των ∆ελφών, της Ολυµπίας και της Ακρόπολης θα είναι και γι' αυτούς ωφέλιµη».

"At this point I would like to talk to you about something which I think would solve our national Security problem once and for all: the concept of Neutrality. In other words, Greece should become Switzerland, the Switzerland of Culture and Peace. With weapons such as ours, our history, our contribution to civilisation and our more recent involvement in crushing fascism, it is indeed possible to turn this great vision into reality. With the proviso of course, that all Greeks both inside and outside the country, will try to persuade the United Nations (and of course the great powers) that our existence as a meeting point of cultures and a place where disputes will be solved, in the shadow of Delphi, Olympia and the Acropolis, will also be beneficial to them"

Food for thought indeed...

If only our leaders would pay attention to the words of this unique and gifted man and artist, Greece would be in a better place.

Let's hope that Miki's vision will soon become a reality.

This is definitely something that we can all work towards.

Let's DO it!

A small country, an enormous cultural heritage...
Passing the light on to the world
Torch Lighting ceremony for the Olympic Flame at Ancient Olympia

A small country, an enormous cultural heritage...
Epidaurus Ancient theatre

A small country, an enormous cultural heritage...
Theatre of Herodes Atticus

A small country, an enormous cultural heritage...
The home of the Revival of the Olympic Games in 1896
The Panathenaic / Kallimarmaro Olympic Stadium