# Απρίλη μου, Απρίλη μου ξανθέ



## Theseus (Sep 22, 2017)

By chance I came upon this unbelievably beautiful song. I have just two queries: why is April called ξανθός (blonde) & is there a single word to translate γαϊτανόφρυδο into English? 'Cordon-shaped eyebrow' is ugly, while 'thin & finely designed' is clumsy?







Στίχοι: Μίκης Θεοδωράκης
Μουσική: Μίκης Θεοδωράκης
Πρώτη εκτέλεση: Γρηγόρης Μπιθικώτσης

Άλλες ερμηνείες: 
Χορωδία Τερψιχόρης Παπαστεφάνου

Απρίλη μου, Απρίλη μου *ξανθέ*
και Μάη μυρωδάτε, καρδιά μου πώς αντέ 
Καρδιά μου πώς, καρδιά μου πώς αντέχεις
μέσα στην τόση αγάπη και στις τόσες ομορφιές

Γιομίζ’ η γειτονιά τραγούδια και φιλιά
Την κοπελιά μου τη λένε Λενιώ
Την κοπελιά μου τη λένε Λενιώ
Την κοπελιά μου τη λένε Λενιώ, μα το `χω μυστικό

Αστέρι μου, αστέρι μου χλωμό
του φεγγαριού αχτίδα στο *γαϊτανόφρυδο*
Στο γαϊτανο , στο γαϊτανοφρυδό σου
κρεμάστηκε η καρδιά μου σαν το πουλάκι στο ξόβεργο

Γιομίζ’ η γειτονιά...

Λουλούδι μου, λουλούδι μυριστό
και ρόδο μυρωδάτο, στη μάνα σου θα `ρθω
στη μάνα σου, στη μάνα σου θα `ρθω
να πάρω την ευχή της και το ταίρι που αγαπώ

Γιομίζ’ η γειτονιά...:):):)


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## daeman (Sep 22, 2017)

...
Picture these eyebrows, Theseus, in a ray of moonlight:



daeman said:


> Ορίστε και μια γαϊτανοφρύδα (στην Κρήτη τα λέμε και _γραμμένα φρύδια_):



but -allegedly- blonde. A sight for sore eyes.

*γαϊτάνι*


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## SBE (Sep 22, 2017)

In response to why April is describes a blond, Theseus, see the following verses by Solomos. I have also highlighted the verses that you are most likely to come across in other text and included a clip from Eternity and a Day (note 3:15). 

Δ. ΣΟΛΩΜΟΣ: ΕΛΕΥΘΕΡΟΙ ΠΟΛΙΟΡΚΗΜΕΝΟΙ
ΣΧΕΔΙΑΣΜΑ Γ΄, αποσπάσματα 6

*Έστησ’ ο Έρωτας χορό με τον ξανθόν Απρίλη,
Κι η φύσις ηύρε την καλή και τη γλυκιά της ώρα,*
Και μες στη σκιά που φούντωσε και κλει δροσιές και μόσχους
Ανάκουστος κιλαϊδισμός και λιποθυμισμένος.

Νερά καθάρια και γλυκά, νερά χαριτωμένα,
Χύνονται μες την άβυσσο τη μοσχοβολισμένη,
Και πέρνουνε το μόσχο της, κι αφήνουν τη δροσιά τους,
Κι ούλα στον ήλιο δείχνοντας τα πλούτια της πηγής τους,
Τρέχουν εδώ, τρέχουν εκεί, και κάνουν σαν αηδόνια.

Έξ’ αναβρύζει κι η ζωή σ’ γη, σ’ ουρανό σε κύμα.
Αλλά στης λίμνης το νερό, π’ ακίνητό ’ναι κι άσπρο,
Ακίνητ’ όπου κι αν ιδείς, και κάτασπρ’ ως τον πάτο,
Με μικρόν ίσκιον άγνωρον έπαιξ’ η πεταλούδα,
Που ’χ’ ευωδίσει τς ύπνους της μέσα στον άγριο κρίνο.

Αλαφροΐσκιωτε καλέ, για πες απόψε τι ’δες
*Νύχτα γιομάτη θαύματα, νύχτα σπαρμένη μάγια!
*
Χωρίς ποσώς γης, ουρανός και θάλασσα να πνένε,
Ούδ’ όσο καν’ η μέλισσα κοντά στο λουλουδάκι,
Γύρου σε κάτι ατάραχο π’ ασπρίζει μες στη λίμνη,
Μονάχο ανακατώθηκε το στρογγυλό φεγγάρι,
Κι όμορφη βγαίνει κορασιά ντυμένη μες στο φως του.


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## Earion (Sep 22, 2017)

Δεν είναι μόνο ξανθός ο Απρίλης, Θησέα, είναι *νήπιος και ξανθός*.

Νήπιος και ξανθός
Ο περιβόητος ο αβρός Απρίλης
Στο στήθος περισφίγγει το χυμό
Από την καταγάλανη πεδιάδα
Του λουλουδιού ανάβρα

Και τρώει με λαιμαργία τον καρπό
Που από τα δέντρα ρούφηξε
Τα λεία.

Γιώργος Σαραντάρης


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## Theseus (Sep 22, 2017)

I won't have any time tonight to answer these questions. Suffice it to say, I will have a go at the Solomos passage and the Sarantaris. The question arises I have to translate the passages before I can understand ξανθός. Νήπιος seems to be used only in Classical and Koine Greek: I was almost tempted to write 'fair and foolish' for the first line of Earion's little poem but that is probably wholly wrong. I'll give both poems my best tomorrow. Thanks for all the help and interest. :)


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## SBE (Sep 23, 2017)

You don't need to translate Solomos, Theseus, Thomson/ Mackridge have already done that. Solomos Dionysios, _The Free Besieged and other poems_. Translated by Peter Thompson, Roderick Beaton, Peter Colacides, Michael Green and David Ricks. Edited with an introduction by Peter Mackridge. Nottingham: Shoestring Press, 2000. £6 in most shops. 

Also, I am not sure why you are having a hard time understanding why April is described as ξανθός. April is the month of spring, where everything is fresh and new and bright and the sun shines and gives everything a pale yellow hew. Also, babies and young children are blond, and April is a young month. 

Υou may be right about fair and foolish.


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## Theseus (Sep 23, 2017)

Thanks, SBE. I imagined that brunette was more the colour of the hair of Greek children. Not a prejudice: more a mistake. But as for my own children one was born with very blond hair; the other two blondish to brown hair. I should have known.:)
I'll try to get the translation of Solomos but it is a good exercise for me to try and translate it myself. I am a glutton for punishment.


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## Earion (Sep 23, 2017)

There may be more connotations in νήπιος, apart from foolish. I woud suggest also “young, inexprerienced and innocent”.


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## SBE (Sep 23, 2017)

Theseus said:


> Thanks, SBE. I imagined that brunette was more the colour of the hair of Greek children. Not a prejudice: more a mistake.



This reminds me of an interview of the mother of a British infant that disappeared in Greece nearly 30 years ago. She said that they thought at first that it would be easy to find him because he would stand out. And soon realised that they were wrong and that there are a lot of fair-haired children in Greece and they could not assume that every family was suspect. Case in point, my godson who was blond and blue eyed until about age two and now has brown hair and eyes. And every other child I know.


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## SBE (Sep 23, 2017)

Now that you discovered this song, Theseus, I expect you will also discover την _Μαργαρίτα Μαργαρώ_, την _Απαγωγή_, το _Μέσα στα μαύρα σου κυρά μου τα μαλλιά_, etc etc.


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## Earion (Sep 23, 2017)

We put a heavy homework on Theseus, SBE. But since he touched on Theodorakis, I think it’s high time for Chatzidakis also.

Ο σκληρός Απρίλης του ’45







And for that matter why not for Tsaroukhis as well.






Γιάννης Τσαρούχης. «Οι δώδεκα μήνες —Απρίλιος».


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## Theseus (Sep 23, 2017)

One thing now at a time. (Thanks, SBE, for your setting me right on the matter of Greek youngsters!:).
First, the short poem of Sarantaris:

Νήπιος και ξανθός Innocent and golden
Ο περιβόητος ο αβρός Απρίλης renowned and gentle April
Στο στήθος περισφίγγει το χυμό binds tight the juice (sap?) in the breast
Από την καταγάλανη πεδιάδα of the breezeless and deep-blue 
Του λουλουδιού ανάβρα plain of flowers.

Και τρώει με λαιμαργία τον καρπό And it greedily consumes the fruit 
Που από τα δέντρα ρούφηξε which sucked from the trees
Τα λεία. Smooth things.(?!)

Γιώργος Σαραντάρης

I find this poem very difficult. I don't make real sense of it


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## SBE (Sep 23, 2017)

I think τα λεία ενικός η λεία= the prey. Ο αετός κυνηγάει τη λεία του στα βουνά.
Ανάβρα (also see αναβλύζω)= πηγή, αυτό που βγαίνει από μέσα


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## SBE (Sep 23, 2017)

Ο περιβόητος ο αβρός = ο περιβόητος Απρίλης με τους λεπτούς τρόπους (which we see further down he does not have)
Στο στήθος περισφίγγει το χυμό 
Από την καταγάλανη πεδιάδα*,* 
Του λουλουδιού ανάβρα = σφίγγει στο στήθος τα λουλούδια από την πεδιάδα, που είναι σαν θάλασσα, και χύνεται απάνω του ο χυμός τους. I think that is quite graphic. 

Και τρώει με λαιμαργία τον καρπό 
Που από τα δέντρα ρούφηξε τα λεία = που έχει ρουφήξει (ο καρπός) από τα δέντρα


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## Theseus (Sep 23, 2017)

Thanks for all this help, SBE. As I thought I made rather a pig’s ear of the translation! Περιβόητος seems to carry the negative meaning of notorious in many dictionaries. Does it mean here 'much-vaunted'?


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## Theseus (Sep 23, 2017)

The words of η Μαργαρίτα η Μαργαρώ are straightforward. Is Μαργαρώ a pet form of η Μαργαρίτα; 
Just for my records:-


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## Theseus (Sep 24, 2017)

I have done most of my homework, including Earion’s suggestions. 
This is Απαγωγή:







Θα πάρω μια βαρκούλα μανούλα 
μου στον Κάτω Γαλατά και στην Αθήνα 
θα ’ρθω καρδούλα μου καβάλα στο Νοτιά.

Και σαν θα ’ρθει το δειλινό στον κήπο σου θα μπω 
να κόψω τα τριαντάφυλλα να κόψω τ’ άστρα 
τ’ ουρανού και τον Αυγερινό.

Θα βάλω στη βαρκούλα μανούλα μου 
λουλούδια και φιλιά δυο γλάροι ταξιδεύουν 
καρδούλα μου καβάλα στο Βοριά.

Και νάτη η Κρήτη φάνηκε γαλάζια και ξανθιά
τη θάλασσα στα μάτια της
τον ουρανό στην αγκαλιά, τον ήλιο στα μαλλιά.

Θ’ αράξω τη βαρκούλα μανούλα μου 
μπροστά σε μια σπηλιά θα σε ταΐζω χάδια 
καρδούλα μου καβούρια και φιλιά.

Στη μάνα μου, στον κύρη μου λέγω και τραγουδώ
σας φέρνω την τριανταφυλλιά, 
σας φέρνω τ’ άστρα τ’ ουρανού και τον Αυγερινό.


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## Theseus (Sep 24, 2017)

To complete my homework, except for the Solomos Temptation passage, here is:-






Στη γειτονιά του φεγγαριού
βγήκα να σεργιανίσω 
να ιδώ τα μάτια τ’ ουρανού
τα χείλη να φιλήσω.

Μέσα στα μαύρα σου κυρά μου τα μαλλιά
φωλιάζουν άστρα, φωλιάζουν άστρα
κι ανοιξιάτικα πουλιά.

Μες στην καρδιά μου ένα πουλί
δεν βλέπεις πως σπαράζει
κι αν κελαηδεί κι αν κελαηδεί
το λιώνει το μαράζι.

Είσαι πριγκίπισσα σωστή
και προίκα σου τα μάτια
η αρχοντιά δεν κατοικεί
μες στα χρυσά παλάτια.

It was very worthwhile homework! Thank you, SBE & Earion. 
I was moved to see the expression on the face of Mikis Theadorakis himself. :)


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## SBE (Sep 24, 2017)

Yes, but the last two of these Theseus these are second-rate executions (sic) of the songs by second-rate artists, who are however popular for other reasons. 
The third one in particular (μέσα στα μάυρα σου μαλλιά) is out of tune and in places sounds like a σκυλάδικο. And the second one is λαικο-ποπ (and I personally find the singer unbearable, but she went through a period where she was on the radio and TV all the time). 

You should aim for the earliest recordings from the 1960s, which in my opinion are better and closer to the spirit of the music and the singers were seriously talented artists.











and here is another version of the same, from the same era but in a completely different style (this particular song was covered by almost everyone who was someone in Greek music in the early 60s). 





Theodorakis, unlike other composers, never hid the fact that he's in it for the money, so he permits anyone to perform his music, quite often without any quality checks. Hadjidakis on the other hand was the very opposite and made sure that even after his death his legacy would be safeguarded in an elitist way, with the result of course that today, twenty years after his death, most young people know only a small part of it. But that's OK, for me it was love at first hearing at age 18 and I like it that way. What Earion suggested was an excellent bridge, Ο Σκληρός Απρίλης is Hadjidakis' orchestrations of rembetico, which at the time it came out, was not the sort of music people listened to. So in that sense, he did bring rembetico to the masses. 
As for περιβόητος, yes, it means notorious, and this is why I said that April is not αβρός. The use of this word implies that he is not all the positive things the poet says about him. Wow! You know, I had a very low mark in mod.greek.lit at school, because I was really bad at analysing poems. I think my teachers would be fine with my analysis here. 

By the way, as a child there were two songs I adored, no idea why because they are sad, but because they were not on the radio much, at some point when I was in my teens I thought I had made them up and that they were probably a mix of several other things I had heard. This one by Theodorakis





and this one by Hadjidakis





PS as you can see, there is more input from Lexi readers with this kind of music, because we are familiar with it and we grew up with it. Rembetico, with the exception of some of it which remains popular, is too much of a certain place and time, and the vocabulary too obscure for modern listeners.


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## Marinos (Sep 24, 2017)

SBE said:


> Theodorakis, unlike other composers, never hid the fact that he's in it for the money, so he permits anyone to perform his music, quite often without any quality checks.



I cannot possibly agree with this assertion, and I don't think Theodorakis himself "never hid this fact". Both composers (Th. and Chatzidakis) had an immense ego, one expressing it in a highly elitistic way, another in a populist one, so to speak. Theodorakis wanted and wants to be heard and praised by crowds, that's why (I believe) he never declined any proposition by popular singers. As another great composer or rather song-maker (with a similar ego), Savvopoulos, had said, Theodorakis wants a huge stadium filled with a crowd that sings, in one voice, _και θα 'μαι πάντα μόνος_ :)
Needless to say, all three are perfectly justified to claim their fame, no matter how immense their egos are!


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## Earion (Sep 24, 2017)

Well well, I don't have the right words to describe this! The whole thing began quite innocently as recommendations to a friend and now it is fast turning into a full course of Modern Greek Culture. Praise should be dealt equally to the patient teacher (SBE) and to the attentive scholar (Theseus). Now, let's get down to business.

1. Περιβόητος need not have necessarily sinister connotations here. I would choose a milder variant: “much vaunted” (already Theseus’ suggestion), “much sung”, “much chanted”.
2. αβρός “of gentle ways, of noble conduct” need not clash with the image of a youth avidly, greedily consuming the juices sapped from the trees. April is both guided by and personifying the forces of life, the vital spirit of Spring.
3. λεία is the adjective (plural, neuter) attached to the trees. Λεία δέντρα : smooth, slick trees.
Sarandaris belonged in the avant-guard of modern Greek poetry (Odysseus Elytis admitted openly he owed much to him). So it is best to think in images rather than words; or alternatively in words that spark images to the mind; or even better having a look at the young angel of Tsaroukhis and trying to match words to image.

4. I would divide the lyrics of Απαγωγή somewhat differently, to make it clearer.

*Απαγωγή*

Θα πάρω μια βαρκούλα —μανούλα μου— στον Κάτω Γαλατά
και στην Αθήνα θα ’ρθω —καρδούλα μου— καβάλα στο Νοτιά.

Και σαν θα ’ρθει το δειλινό στον κήπο σου θα μπω,
να κόψω τα τριαντάφυλλα, να κόψω τ’ άστρα τ’ ουρανού και τον Αυγερινό.

Θα βάλω στη βαρκούλα —μανούλα μου— λουλούδια και φιλιά,
δυο γλάροι ταξιδεύουν —καρδούλα μου— καβάλα στο Βοριά.

Και νάτη η Κρήτη φάνηκε, γαλάζια και ξανθιά,
τη θάλασσα στα μάτια της, τον ουρανό στην αγκαλιά, τον ήλιο στα μαλλιά.

Θ’ αράξω τη βαρκούλα —μανούλα μου— μπροστά σε μια σπηλιά,
θα σε ταΐζω χάδια —καρδούλα μου— καβούρια και φιλιά.

Στη μάνα μου, στον κύρη μου, λέγω και τραγουδώ,
«Σας φέρνω την τριανταφυλλιά, σας φέρνω τ’ άστρα τ’ ουρανού και τον Αυγερινό».


(P.S. And, for the love of God, please try not to bring the worst moments of Eleni Tsaligopoulou in Lexilogia again!)


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## Theseus (Sep 24, 2017)

You have really done an immense amount on my behalf, SBE! Interestingly enough, I tried to access the '60s versions but several I found on YouTube said 'this recording is no longer available'. I listened to the haunting music of Ο σκληρός Απρίλης, recommended by Earion. It seems that Eliot's The Waste Land inspired the title:-
I. THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD

APRIL is the cruellest month, breeding 
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing 
Memory and desire, stirring 
Dull roots with spring rain.

Earion, thanks so much to you for all your detailed help. Please forgive, both of you, a novice in this field. Eleni Tsaligopoulou was (but not now!) wholly unknown to me. I tried to find the best versions, as I said above, but for some reason they were unavailable. Thanks also, Earion, for the helpful division of the lyrics of Απαγωγή. The stanzas make instant sense instead of my having to untangle the words. 
A word to SBE: I was exactly in the same position as you when I was set Latin or Greek literary questions. We were just not taught any methodology. Now a whole industry has burgeoned around literary criticism. I suspect that you, like me, were good, if not excellent, in the matter of linguistic analysis. 
I am now, as a teacher of Classics being phased out for financial reasons. But fortunately I have modern Greek & lexilogia to occupy my time! Very many thanks to both of you for your never-failing help.:):)


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## SBE (Sep 24, 2017)

Marinos said:


> I cannot possibly agree with this assertion, and I don't think Theodorakis himself "never hid this fact".


You can disagree as much as you like, Theodorakis has mentioned issues such as when it is best to release a record to maximise profits etc, and as far as I know he's the only one of his generation who has been heard to make such comments (and no, I don't have a citable reference handy, just my memory). Others prefer to pretend they are in it for the art. Some prefer to have the audience to sit in silence until the end of the performance. 
Needless to say that I find Theodorakis unbearable- not his music, him as a celebrity, and as a singer of some of his music. 

Oh, and by the way, Theseus, something I wanted to say from the start: Farantouri has an amazing voice, but she manages to make most music sound like a military march, so I would suggest you try other covers. And I couldn't agree more with Earion's opinion of Tsaligopoulou (can't describe how happy I am her fifteen minutes of fame are over).

PS Re: Μαργαρώ. I have only heard that diminutive in this song, but most Greek feminine name can be turned into something that ends in -ω. Λενιώ, Μαριώ, Κατερινιώ, Αφρώ (Αφροδίτη), Δέσπω κλπ


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## Marinos (Sep 24, 2017)

Theseus said:


> I listened to the haunting music of Ο σκληρός Απρίλης, recommended by Earion. It seems that Eliot's The Waste Land inspired the title:-
> I. THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD
> 
> APRIL is the cruellest month, breeding
> ...


And of course you guessed right. There is also its twin record (always by Hatzidakis), Πασχαλιές μέσα από τη νεκρή γη - Lilacs out of the dead land.
https://youtu.be/60uCMap7kxc
Here is his note from the 1962 LP. Worth reading:
Ο τίτλος του έργου, μου βγήκε μέσα από το δεύτερο στίχο της «Έρημης Χώρας»* του Έλιοτ, που πρωτογνώρισα το 1943 στη θαυμαστή μετάφραση του Γιώργου Σεφέρη. Ήμουν δεκαοχτώ χρονώ και ως τα είκοσί μου, που τελείωσε ο πόλεμος, ανακάλυπτα την Μεσόγειο, τον Ήλιο, τον Χριστό, την Ελλάδα και τα Ρεμπέτικα. Κάτι περίεργες και πρωτοφανέρωτες για μένα μελωδίες, μου κινήσαν την προσοχή και με φέρανε σε περιοχές πιο αυστηρές και πιο αληθινές. Μπήκα μέσα σε μικρά μαγαζιά, απίθανα κρυμμένα κι απλησίαστα, σε χώρους μυσταγωγικούς, με κείνη την τολμηρή αστοχασιά της νεότητας, μαγεμένος από τα γυάλινα κεντήματα των μπουζουκιών, από τον επίμονο και διαπεραστικό ήχο του μπαγλαμά, θαμπωμένος από το μεγαλείο και τη βαθύτητα των μελωδικών φράσεων, ξένος, μικρός κι αδύναμος, πίστεψα με μιας πως το τραγούδι αυτό που άκουγα, ήταν δικιά μου, μια ολότελα δικιά μου υπόθεση. Τον ίδιο καιρό, ο Τσαρούχης μου συνειδητοποιούσε το λυρισμό της γειτονιάς μου, ο Ελύτης τη λατρεία του Ελληνικού Ήλιου και ο Σεφέρης με τον Γκάτσο τη δυσκολία και τη σοφία της Ελληνικής γης, ενώ το υγιές ένστικτό μου με οδηγούσε μακριά από τη ρηχότητα των «πολιτισμένων» ελαφρών μας τραγουδιών ή από τη Βαλκανική Ρωμιοσύνη της «σοβαρής» μας μουσικής. Τα μπουζούκια τότε, στα μικρά και χωρίς αξιώσεις κέντρα τους, δεν είχαν φωτεινές επιγραφές από Νέον, δεν είχαν βεντέτες και ονόματα ηχηρά, δεν παρίσταναν τους «Έλληνες» για τους Τουρίστες, αλλά με σεμνότητα, με λάμπες πετρελαίου πολλές φορές, λειτουργούσαν απλά και ξεδίπλωναν με φανταστική δύναμη, μεράκια, βιώματα και πάθη, γνησίως Ελληνικά.

Το 1949, πρωτομίλησα γι’ αυτά τα τραγούδια, με φανατισμό και με αφέλεια, αλλά και με ιδέες και τόλμη, σε μια σειρά διαλέξεων που οργάνωσε το «Θέατρο Τέχνης». Κανείς δεν με πίστεψε, όμως όλοι συγχώρησαν τη νεανικότητά μου. Το 1950, παρουσίασα τις «Έξι Λαϊκές Ζωγραφιές». Όλοι νόμισαν πως εξευγένισα επιτυχώς τα μπουζούκια, χωρίς να σκεφθούν πώς, ποια ανάγκη μπορούσε να με οδηγήσει στο να εξευγενίζω τραγούδια μη ευγενή, γιατί να διοχετεύω το οποιοδήποτε ταλέντο μου στην υπηρεσία μιας μουσικής, που για να υπάρξει, είχε την ανάγκη μου; Είχαν και πάλι λάθος. Η επιτυχία όμως των «Έξι Λαϊκών Ζωγραφιών», ξύπνησε τους εμπόρους, τα ελαφρά θέατρα, τους μικροπρεπείς μουσικούς, τη βαθμιαία αναπτυσσόμενη τουριστική επιδίωξη, το εύκολο «Ελληνικόν μένος» των διεθνών μας προσωπικοτήτων, ώσπου ήρθε η ταινία «Ποτέ την Κυριακή» και στάθηκε η χαριστική βολή σ’ αυτό που υπήρξε κάποτε το Λαϊκό μας τραγούδι. Σήμερα, ύστερα από είκοσι χρόνια, σαν προσευχή, θέλησα να κάμω αυτόν τον δίσκο και νομίζω πως πέτυχα να ξαναζωντανέψω όλο εκείνο το μελωδικό υλικό, που χρόνια τώρα διατηρούσα μέσα μου και συγχρόνως να εκφράσω όλη την εφηβική ευαισθησία ενός Νέου Έλληνα με παράδοση, μαζί με κείνη τη λεπτή κι ανοιξιάτικη θρησκευτική ατμόσφαιρα του Επιταφίου. Μαζί κι ο Έλιοτ με τον Τσαρούχη, που ζωγράφισε το εξώφυλλο, συνθέτουν την αληθινή νεανική μου ευαισθησία και ζωγραφίζουν μ’ όλες τις αποχρώσεις μια λιτανεία από εντατικές στιγμές. Η φιλοδοξία μου ήταν να φτιάξω ένα έργο, για όλους τους αληθινούς Νέους. «Για τους γενναίους, τους ελεύθερους και δυνατούς», όπως θα έλεγε ο Εγγονόπουλος την εποχή εκείνη”.

*«Ο Απρίλης είναι ο μήνας ο σκληρός, γεννώντας
Μες απ’ την πεθαμένη γη τις πασχαλιές, σμίγοντας
Θύμηση κι επιθυμία, ταράζοντας
Με τη βροχή της άνοιξης ρίζες οκνές…»

Η αρχή από την «Έρημη Χώρα» του Έλιοτ, σε μετάφραση του Γιώργου Σεφέρη, πρώτη έκδοση, «Ίκαρος», Ιούλιος 1936.


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## Theseus (Sep 24, 2017)

Thanks, SBE, again and Marinos. I do not know enough to join in the fray so I will let that pass. But the note you gave me to read is utterly fascinating, Marinos!

Here is a translation I found of Απαγωγή (Sweet Abduction):-
Music and Lyrics by Mikis Theodorakis 

"From down at Galata, my love,
From there a boat I'll take,
On south wind, dearest heart, I'll come
For Athens I will make.

And at dusk to you I'll come
Into your garden there
I'll roses cut and from the sky
I'll have the stars and the Morning Star.

And in the boat, my precious love,
I'll put my flowers and kisses
And then we'll sail on northern breeze,
Two seagulls flying with us.

And there before us now is Crete
All shining blue and fair,
In her eyes the sea, in her arms the sky,
The sun in her golden hair.

The boat I'll moor by a cave, my love,
We'll feed on all we wish
Sea food from the ocean blue,
And soft caress and kiss.

To father and mother I'll sing:
I'm bringing you the sweetest rose
I'm bringing you the stars in the sky and the Morning Star".


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## Theseus (Sep 24, 2017)

The lyrics, omitted earlier:

Η Μαργαρίτα η Μαργαρώ, 
περιστεράκι στον ουρανό...
τον ουρανό μες στα δυο σου μάτια κοιτάζω,
βλέπω την Πούλια και τον Αυγερινό.

Η μάνα σου είναι τρελή
και σε κλειδώνει μοναχή, 
σαν θέλω νa ’μπω στην κάμαρή σου
μου ρίχνεις μεταξωτό σκοινί, 
και κλειδωμένους μας βλέπει η νύχτα, 
μας βλέπουν τ’ άστρα κι η χαραυγή.

Η Μαργαρίτα η Μαργαρώ, 
βαρκούλα στο Σαρωνικό...
Σαρωνικέ μου, τα κυματάκια σου δώσ’ μου, 
δώσ’ μου τ’ αγέρι, δώσ’ μου το πέλαγο.

Η μάνα σου είναι τρελή
και σε κλειδώνει μοναχή, 
σαν θέλω να ’μπω στην κάμαρή σου
μου ρίχνεις μεταξωτό σκοινί, 
και κλειδωμένους μας βλέπει η νύχτα, 
μας βλέπουν τ’ άστρα κι η χαραυγή.

Η Μαργαρίτα η Μαργαρώ, 
δεντράκι στο Βοτανικό...
Πάρε το τραμ μόλις δεις πως πέφτει η νύχτα, 
πέφτουν οι ώρες, πέφτω, λιποθυμώ.

Η μάνα μου είναι τρελή
και με κλειδώνει μοναχή, 
σαν θέλω να ’μπεις στην κάμαρή μου
σου ρίχνω μεταξωτό σχοινί, 
και κλειδωμένους μας βλέπει η νύχτα
μας βλέπουν τ’ άστρα κι η χαραυγή.

And an online translation:

Margaret, Margaro,
Little dove in the sky,
inside your two eyes I can see at the sky
I see the glitter and the stars.

Your mother is mad
and has shut you in all alone.
When I want to come into your room
you throw me a silken ladder
and as we are shut in together, the night looks on us,
the stars look on us, and the dawn.

Margaret, Margarita!
Little boat on the Saronic Gulf,
sweep me on, give to me those little waves,
give me the wind, give me the sea!

Your mother is mad
and has shut you in all alone.
When I want to come into your room
you throw me a silken ladder
and as we are shut in together, the night looks on us,
the stars look on us, and the dawn.

Margaret, Margaro!
Little tree in Votaniko square!
Take the tram as you see how the night falls,
the hours pass, I'm falling down, I'm passing out. 

My mother is mad
and has shut me in all alone.
When I want you to come into my room
I throw you a silken ladder
and as we are shut in together, the night looks on us,
the stars look on us, and the dawn.

Just for my records...... As one now to dumb forgetfulness a prey!:)2


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## Theseus (Sep 25, 2017)

I have just about translated the Solomos Temptation passage. I will submit it sometime tomorrow. BTW, SBE, the Shoestring edition of _The Free Besieged_ is out of print and currently unavailable anywhere I have searched for it, including Abebooks and Alibris. No matter, I think I have produced an accurate and tolerable rendering. Whew! :)


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## SBE (Sep 25, 2017)

The Hellenic Centre appears to have some copies at £6, here. 
While you are there, you might also want to purchase Romiosini. 

PS I disagree with Earion that in this thread we covered most of Greek music culture of the 20th century. We barely touched the 50s and early 60s.


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## Earion (Sep 25, 2017)

Well done again. Only two factual points:

“I see the glitter and the stars” : Πούλια is the popular name for Pleiades; Αυγερινός is the popular name for the Mornig Star (the planet Venus).

Votanikos is not a simple square; it is a whole neighborhood with the Athens Botanical Garden at its core. A working class neighborhood --hence the rembetiko song Του Βοτανικού ο μάγκας.


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## Theseus (Sep 25, 2017)

Thanks, Earion. It was not my translation. As I said above it was an online one that I found. Nevertheless, your notes are worth remembering. What is the Greek for the Evening Star? Αποσπερίτης; Έσπερος;


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## Neikos (Sep 25, 2017)

Theseus said:


> What is the Greek for the Evening Star? Αποσπερίτης; Έσπερος;



Και τα δύο, Θησέα, αλλά κυρίως χρησιμοποιείται το πρώτο. 
Το Έσπερος πιο πιθανό είναι το συναντήσεις ως όνομα αθλητικού σωματίου ή στην ταμπέλα	κανενός ξενοδοχείου, κέντρου διασκέδασης κλπ.

Θανάσης Παπακωνσταντίνου - Αποσπερίτης


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## Earion (Sep 25, 2017)

Thanassis Papakonstantinou? The one who composed also a song about the Morning Star? 
Here it is (performed by the sorely missed Nikos Papazoglou) (Too many names for you, Theseus, I understand :s )


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## Theseus (Sep 25, 2017)

Thanks, Neikos. Does της νύχτας το μετέωρο mean the meteor of the night or the shooting star? :) Thanks, Earion: a lovely song. No problems with the lyrics. I presume that αστέρι, που πριν έρθεις καν, καν is a postposited particle, meaning, as usual, 'even if'?


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## Earion (Sep 26, 2017)

before you even came


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## Theseus (Sep 26, 2017)

Thanks, Earion.


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## SBE (Sep 27, 2017)

Σε απάντηση αυτού που είπε ο Εάριος περί μαθήματος ελληνικής κουλτούρας: έχουμε ακόμα πολύ δρόμο. Ακόμα δεν έχει ανακαλύψει ο Θησέας αρχοντορεμπέτικα, νέο κύμα, Χατζιδάκι, Ξαρχάκο, Μαρκόπουλο κλπ.


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## Theseus (Sep 27, 2017)

Does αρχοντο- here mean 'dominant'? The prefix in compounds has too many uses for me to determine exactly what it means in conjunction with ρεμπέτικα. Thanks. 
*BTW, since Mikis Theodorakis wrote over a thousand songs, what are generally considered the best? So far, Απαγωγή is my favourite.*


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## Earion (Sep 27, 2017)

Αρχοντο- here means “destined for the upper classes”, hence “of refined taste”. Once the real rebetika gained a larger audience, sometime in the late forties-early fifties, mainstream composers and verse writers rushed to fill the market with imitation songs to satisfy the growing demand. They were mainly performed in theatre reviews (what in Greek is called επιθεωρήσεις), and a lot of them were creations of high quality.


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## Theseus (Sep 27, 2017)

Thanks, Earion. The prefix is often used in compounds whose meaning is sometimes hard to determine.


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## SBE (Sep 27, 2017)

And of course αρχονοτρεμπέτικα were "in the style of" but with themes and vocabulary more suitable for polite society. Here is a selection:


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## SBE (Sep 27, 2017)

And so many more. 
As for your other question, Theseus, regarding what is Theodorakis' best, I doubt we can make a list. In a career of over 50 years, there are too many too mention. And they also differ in style, because like all artists he went through periods of different influences and styles. Which reminds me...
A few years ago (2003 to be exact), I was a guest at a wedding in Kavala and they had two musicians who played for about four hours and covered every period and style of Greek music you can imagine, excluding σκυλάδικο of course. It was like the history of 20th c. hits. After a 20-minute slot of ποντιακά, which is rather obligatory in that part of the world, they played a selection from Άστα τα μαλλάκια σου ανακατωμένα to the present. There were some French guests who said they were impressed that everybody knew the lyrics to all the songs. Maybe in France they have a different relationship with music.


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## Theseus (Sep 27, 2017)

I am overwhelmed! I shall patiently trawl (an oxymoron?) through these songs and learn. I am indebted to you both for your patience and interest. Just to listen to these songs has me transported to different worlds I had not known existed. And Richard Dawkins and ilk have the temerity to suggest that science is the *only* way to truth!
It is interesting to note that one of Theodorakis's abiding influences was the music of the Orthodox Church. Currently I am listening to Myrtia. This seems a good selection of some of his greatest music. One of the most moving pieces of music I have ever heard comes from the liturgy of Great Saturday: 

Ω γλυκύ μου έαρ,
γλυκύτατόν μου Τέκνον,
πού έδυ σου το κάλλος;
Υιέ Θεού παντάναξ,
Θεέ μου πλαστουργέ μου,
πώς πάθος κατεδέξω;
Έρραναν τον τάφον αι Μυροφόροι μύρα,
λίαν πρωί ελθούσαι.

This thread has given me so much. Words fail me.


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## daeman (Sep 28, 2017)

Theseus said:


> ...One of the most moving pieces of music I have ever heard comes from the liturgy of Great Saturday:
> Ω γλυκύ μου έαρ...



Sung by Maria Farantouri, with Western notation and an English translation matching the meter: http://lexilogia.gr/forum/showthread.php?11098-Πασχαλινά&p=217334&viewfull=1#post217334


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## Theseus (Sep 28, 2017)

Such music and words is beyond all description, 'Man. When I first heard them in Moni Toplou in Crete, I lost all sense of time and place and knew first what awe really was: _mysterium tremendum ac fascinans_--mystery aweful and yet drawing us towards it, like a hapless moth towards flame. We began with April and we end with γλυκύ έαρ. It is no coincidence that Crete took me to Orthodoxy. The owner of the Glaros villas that we rented for those memorable few days, Sophocles also a _psaltis _at the monastery, adopted me and gave me his service book containing all the liturgy of Great week. I still read his moving inscription in the front cover.


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## SBE (Sep 28, 2017)

Το me, Theseus, the popular culture of Greece for my generation is the Saturday night Greek movie on TV (films from the 50s to the 70s) and the music hour(s) on Δεύτερο Προγραμμα (and elsewhere on radio, but mainly there). Yes, I know, this is perhaps a simplistic approach and there are other cultural markers, but this is something we all have in common. If you missed the songs on radio, you still heard them in the films. 

Going back to your question on Theodorakis, it might be best to think of song cycles, instead of individual songs. For example. most of the Theodorakis songs we discussed earlier are from Πολιτεία Α' So I'm going to intensify your homework by sending you to listen to all of it. 
From Theodorakis, Πολιτεία Α', Β',
Αρχιπέλαγος (the whole set) and here's an extra bonus piece.


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## SBE (Sep 28, 2017)

Οh, and of course the song that set off this discussion is from a theatrical play, and here is the whole soundtrack of the play (is that what they call in in theatre?)

So yeah, I would argue that there is no Φραγκοσυριανή moment for Theodorakis, but that may be just me. For Tsitsanis there's Συννεφιασμένη Κυριακή, for Hadjidakis Είμαι αητός χωρίς φτερά, maybe. Of course all of the above cannot be defined by just one song, but these are probably their most popular work. For Theodorakis, maybe Βράχο βραχο τον καημό μου? Or Βρέχει στη φτωχογειτονιά? Not sure.


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## Earion (Sep 28, 2017)

Theseus, your question is a big temptation, to which it would be a pity not to succumb. I intend to respond, although I know that everybody else is going to protest and suggest other selections of songs, wich means that you will end with a full list of a thousand songs (indeed the composer himself vouches for the accuracy of that number). Now, without further ado, here’s my list, reflecting my very personal taste. And please remember that I have chosen individual songs, not songs belonging to a song cycle.*

* Theodorakis loved to compose entire song cycles; there are plenty to choose. But the most celebrated and appreciated ones are based on verses of well-known poets: _Axion Esti_ (on the poetry of Odysseus Elytis, 1964) and _ Epitaphios_ (poetry of Yannis Ritsos, 1960).

For the period before 1967 (the beginning of the military dictatorship), I say:

Χάθηκα (1962)






and

Αγάπη μου (Φαίδρα) (1960)






For the period of the military dictatorship (1967-1974) I choose:

Το παλικάρι έχει καημό (1969)






And for the period after 1974, I recommend three songs form the best record of that period, _The Ballads_ (poetry of Manolis Anagnostakis, 1975):

Δρόμοι παλιοί





 
Όταν μιαν άνοιξη






and
Οι στίχοι αυτοί






That was a sample of the lyrical Theodorakis, not the epic one, the political.


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## Theseus (Sep 29, 2017)

Thanks so much, SBE and Earion. I'm currently in Wales for a long weekend, my first holiday for two years. I'll be back Tuesday. Thanks for all your suggestions; if I followed them all up, I would be silent on Lexilogia for a long time to come! But I shall pick and mix my way through. The signal is poor here but I've taken my volume of Seferis's poetry to read. So many songs, so little time. Hippocrates wrote at the beginning of his aphorisms:

Ὁ βίος βραχύς,
ἡ δὲ τέχνη μακρή,
ὁ δὲ καιρὸς ὀξύς,
ἡ δὲ πεῖρα σφαλερή,
ἡ δὲ κρίσις χαλεπή.

In a word, “it takes a long time to acquire and perfect one's expertise (in, say, medicine) and one has but a short time in which to do it”. It can be interpreted as “art lasts forever, but artists die and are forgotten”. It is as true of the listener as of the artist.


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