Search - Giorgos Ntalaras, Mikis Theodorakis :: Romiosyni - Axion Esti

Mikis Theodorakis' Axion Esti Lyrics (And More) in Greek

John Mccoubrey | MA, USA | 11/07/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Theodorakis' music has inspired me to study modern Greek so that I can read the Greek lyrics he sets to music, but 95% of the many recordings I've bought now don't show the Greek texts. Translations to English (maybe), or German, or French, but no Greek. Astounding, but true! The market for Theodorakis' music thrives despite it's being supplied with the least substantive auxiliary content. Both works on these two CDs show the Greek text *only*. In addition, the generous write-ups about each work are *only* in Greek. Generous is an understatement. There are 30 beautifully rendered, glossy, interior pages, and as beautifully rendered front and back covers. The sharp typesetting is easy to read. Wonderful accompanying photos. Bio and photo of each poet, Jannis Ritsos and Odysseas Elytis. Curiously, the right side of the back cover is an English translation of the Greek on the left, which lists each work's title, its author, title per track, etc. The most beautiful CD housing I have ever seen! Oversized for a jewel case, more like a small book, obviously to accommodate the generous reading matter. And lined with red velvet, so appropriate for the blood-soaked lyrics of these two great poets. The Axion Esti lines have been liberally reformatted from Elytis' original formatting.



I love the recording. My first exposure to Theodorakis' Axion Esti was the German-sung (English-translated, but no Greek) CD with Gothart Stier and Gunter Emmerlich, which I as thoroughly love, though the last movement, The Gloria, did not work for me there, but instantly overwhelmed me in this Greek rendering. Here, I *heard* the *gloria*!



Shortcoming: the CDs readily slip off their spindles because of the red felt wrapped around them. My solution: house the CDs in my own double CD jewel case that is better-constructed to that purpose, and use the leftover "booklet" solely for following and studying the lyrics in Greek. Among my favorite CDs in my huge CD library, and one of my most-prized Theodorakis recordings."