'Canto General' Theodorakis Centenary 16-17.2.2025

As part of the celebration of the centenary of the birth of Mikis Theodorakis, Maria Farantouri and baritone Tasis Christogiannopoulos, under the direction of Miltos Loyadis, perform works by the great Greek composer.

The concert opens with Pablo Neruda’s iconic Canto General (excerpts) in his original orchestration for a 15-member ensemble and two choirs. The Chilean Nobel laureate’s work is a poetic cosmogony of Latin America, an appeal to life, peace and freedom in a new, bright and hopeful world. Mikis Theodorakis’ setting transformed it into a modern classic of extraordinary power and beauty, with constant changes in the rich melodic line and extensive polyrhythmic movements.

On the lips of Maria Farantouri and Petros Pandi (its first performers), the Greek composer’s masterpiece acquired universal dimensions as it was received with enthusiastic reviews in the major theatres of Europe, the United States, Latin America and Canada. The rehearsals of the work in Paris in 1972 in the presence of Pablo Neruda himself were historic, as were the concerts in Havana in 1979 and 1981 in the presence of Fidel Castro.

The second part of the concert features songs by the composer from well-known and beloved circles, orchestrated by pianist Achilleas Wastor.