Manos Hatzidakis

  He died on June 15, 1994 in Athens, aged 68, from heart disease and type 2 diabetes. His estate and archives were bequeathed to his adopted son, George Theophanopoulos-Hatzidakis. [ citation needed ] In 1999 the City of Athens dedicated Technopolis in his memory.

Hatzidakis returned to Greece in 1972 and recorded Magnus Eroticus with singer Fleury Dantonaki , an opera-trained alto and singer Dimitris Psarianos . Following the junta 's overthrow, he became active in public life and assumed a number of positions in the Athens State Orchestra (KOA), the National Opera (ELS), and the National Radio ( ERT ). In 1985 he launched his own record company "Seirios" (Sirius). In 1988 he helped Foivos Delivorias get started in his singing career. In 1989 he founded and directed the Orchestra of Colours (Orhistra ton Chromaton), a small symphonic orchestra. [ citation needed ] He assumed the role of score composer for his friend Federico Fellini 's films, following Nino Rota 's death, but the collaboration never materialized because of Hatzidakis's mounting health problems. [

While in the United States he completed several more major compositions, including Rhythmology ( Rythmologia ) for solo piano, his compilation, Gioconda's Smile (produced by Quincy Jones ), and the song cycle, Magnus Eroticus (Megalos Erotikos), in which he used ancient ( Sappho , Euripides ), medieval (stanzas from folk songs and George Hortatzis ' romance Erophile ) and modern ( Dionysios Solomos , Constantine Cavafy , Odysseus Elytis , Nikos Gkatsos ) Greek poems, as well as an excerpt from the Old Testament book "Wisdom of Solomon". His LP Reflections with the New York Rock & Roll Ensemble contained several of his most beautiful songs, either in orchestral form or with English lyrics written by the band – a record that preceded fusion trends by several decades.

His very first work was the tune for the song "Paper Moon" ("Χάρτινο το Φεγγαράκι"), from Tennessee Williams ' A Streetcar Named Desire staged by Karolos Koun 's Art Theatre of Athens, a collaboration which continued for 15 years. His first piano piece, "For a Small White Seashell" ("Για μια Μικρή Λευκή Αχιβάδα"), came out in 1947 and in 1948 he shook the musical establishment by delivering his legendary lecture on rembetika , the urban folk songs that flourished in Greek cities, mainly Piraeus , after the Asia Minor refugee influx in 1922 and until then had heavy underworld and cannabis use connections and were consequently looked down upon. [ citation needed ] Hatzidakis focused on the economy of expression, the deep traditional roots and the genuineness of emotion displayed in rembetika, and exalted the likes of composers like Markos Vamvakaris and Vassilis Tsitsanis . Putting theory to practice, he adapted classic rembetika ...

Manos Hadjidakis (also spelled Hatzidakis ; Greek : Μάνος Χατζιδάκις ; October 23, 1925 – June 15, 1994) was a Greek composer and theorist of Greek music. He was also one of the main prime movers of the "Éntekhno" song (along with Mikis Theodorakis ). In 1960 he received an Academy Award for Best Original Song for his Song Never on Sunday from the self-titled movie .