Theodorakis, Mikis ,
1925-2021, Greek composer and politician, b. Chios island, Greece, Athens
Conservatoire (1950). Theodorakis showed interest in music since childhood,
staging his first concert at age 17. During World War II, he went to Athens
to study music (1943-50), and became a member of the Greek resistance,
beginning a long association with the Communist party. In 1953, he moved to
Paris to study music there, where his first orchestral works in a European
style were premiered and widely praised. In 1960, he returned to Greece and
began developing a style of music that wed traditional Greek music and
poetry with classical forms, achieving international fame for his score to
the film Zorba the Greek (1964). In 1963, he resumed his
political activism following the murder of Greek activist Grigoris Lambrakis
by far-right extremists. (His murder was the subject of the 1969 film,
Z, which Theodorakis scored.) When the Greek military
overthrew the government in 1967, Theodorakis's music was banned and he was
imprisoned; on his release, he was sent into exile in a remote mountainous
region. Following international protests, he was released to live in Paris
in 1970, but could not return to his native country until after the downfall
of the military junta in 1974. He continued to be active in politics,
serving in the Greek Parliament (1981-86 and 1989-93), and then became the
director of the Hellenic State Radio's orchestras and choir. His best-known
work from this period was his "Mauthausen Trilogy" (1988), a series of arias
honoring the 50 anniversary of the liberation of Austria's Mauthausen
concentration camp. In later life, he returned to composing symphonies and
operas. In addition to his music, he wrote several books addressing world
politics and several volumes of poetry. Among his awards and honors were the
Lenin Peace Prize (1983), Officer of the Legion of Honor, France (1996),
and the International Music Prize, UNESCO (2005). He was also named an
Honorary Member of the Academy of Athens (2013).
See his autobiography (5 vols., 1985-95).
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
See more Encyclopedia articles on: Music: History, Composers, and Performers: Biographies
