One hundred years have passed today by the birth of Mikis Theodorakis. The occasion for an interview with her Gail Holst-Guarhaft (Gail Holst-Warhaft), Professor, Hellenistic, Musician and author of the book “Mikis Theodorakis: Myth and Politics in Contemporary Greek Music”, which is just before its 3rd completed edition (editions, metronome).

We asked the Australian specialist for the Greek composer 100 years since his birth and about four of his outstanding: “For the Greeks the songs will be left. And the melody that was amazing. In my opinion, this was Theodorakis’ greatest talent, the talent.

In the rest of the world I think it is slowly conscious that he was also a great classic composer. In Germany and France it is recognized that he was a great composer of classical music. “

“He was constantly born new tunes”

Australian Gail Holst loved and settled in Greece in the mid -60s. The book “The Road to Rebetiko” was released and relatively recently the book “A Journey to Rebetiko for Little and Big” (Fagotto Books).

He met Theodorakis on a tour of Australia in 1972. Since then he began to work intensively with his work, even traveling with him to the post -war concerts in Peloponnese and Central Greece playing a tsmbalo.

At DW he says that despite the extermination exiles, mentally and physically, Theodorakis never lost his optimism and creativity:

“I feel awe for Mikey. When I read his autobiography (“The Roads of Archangel”) I realized how much these people suffered. It is incredible. Theoretically these people could not do anything after these tragic experiences. After every crisis, however, Mikis managed to create something new. It was a continuation creative. There was no day that a new melody had in mind. “

He was worshiped by progressives in Israel

For the specialist in Greek music, Theodorakis was and remains a phenomenon in the history of music: “Mikis was full, he was a source, he looked like a volcano. He had so many tunes inside him that I know nothing similar in the history of music. So many and nice tunes. Maybe if Subert had lived for more years he might have been writing … similar songs (laughs). “

Gail Holst finally told us a personal story to describe the power of Mikis Theodorakis’ music: “Several years ago when my husband was a professor of engineering at Cornell University, he was visited by a colleague from Israel. When I started talking to his wife about Greek music and Mikis Theodorakis, he stopped me, put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a piece of Theodorakis ticket to Israel. He told me that “it was the most important night of my life and I have kept it in my pocket since then.” Needless to say, he did not understand Greek. Mikis’ impression with these concerts, wherever he went was great. At least at that time the left, or at least the progressives in Israel worshiped him. “