Maria Farantouri's concert which was held at the Megaron Mousikes last night, was fantastic.
The concert was great fun. Farantouri was in great form and she sang songs by several composers including Hatzidakis, Theodorakis, Xarhakos, all based on the poetry of Nikos Gatsos.
It was a great evening and one that reminded me of the times during the Junta when we used to go to boites in Plaka to listen to resistance songs by various composers, but mainly by Theodorakis. It was a dark time for people in Greece, one that was characterised by fear. Those who were already classified as left wing and those who were brave were arrested by the police and thrown into jail where they were tortured. The majority of the people however were scared and kept their heads down: one of the few outlets was going to boites and listening to resistance songs. Theodorakis was exiled in Paris at the time, but his songs used to get through to us and we would avidly listen to them and this was one of our main forms of resistance. I remember the atmosphere in those boites so clearly: they were small, dark places where the hatred of the regime would be channelled and shared.
Even today I find it very difficult to listen to these songs without getting deeply moved.
This song is from the Mauthausen album.
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The lyrics of this song are by Federico Garcia Lorca, the Spanish poet who was murdered by the Right during the Spanish Civil War.