"Greek Carnival" Ballet Suite for Orchestra - Mikis Theodorakis

Orchestra of Colours conducted by Miltos Logiades.
I - Introduction: 0:00
II - Men‘s Dance: 1:39
III - Great Dance: 4:55
IV - Love Dance: 9:57
V - Divertimento: 16:10
VI - Three Carnaval Dances. Maypole (17:19) - Pony (20:21) - Camel (22:30)
VII - Girl‘s Dance: 26:26
VIII - Finale: 29:24
Theodorakis' ''Greek Carnival'' was composed between 1947-53. Originally conceived as a symphonic suite, it was then arranged as music for a ballet with the same title, performed at the Rome Opera House. Written while the composer was intermittently studying at the Athens Conservatory and in the middle of the Greek Civil War, the piece blends the early neoclassical style of Theodorakis with Greek folk elements. Unfortunately, not much info is available about the piece.
In 1947, Theodorakis was arrested and deported for the first time to the island of Icaria. He was freed in 1948 thanks to the Sofoulis amnesty, but two months later he was arrested again and exiled to Icaria, then to Makronisos where he was tortured and twice buried alive. In Icaria and Makronissos he was exposed to various traditional musical forms and folklore of Greece, through interactions with fellow prisoners and local people. Those melodies and rhythms went deep down, helping him to survive, just as the loving letters from Myrto Altinoglou, a medical student in Athens and a fervent left partisan, whom he would marry a few years later.
The first movement consists of a short but solemn introduction. The second takes the form of a slow and expressive masculine dance, contrasted by a more colourful and lively dance that is the third movement. After such boisterous and energetic music, we find a respite in the fourth movement, unfolding as a slow and sensuous love dance. It grows more disenchanted and bitter in the central part, before returning to its initial atmosphere. The short fifth movement is a playful and virtuosic divertimento. The sixth consists of three lively Greek dances, in which one can hear the early influence of Stravinsky. The seventh movement is a feminine slow dance of eastern tone. The finale consist of a vibrant dance, full of colour and rhythm, ending the work brilliantly.
Picture: "Pretty woman" by the Greek painter Dimitris Mytaras.
Musical analysis written by myself.
Unfortunately, the score is not available.

[@garygordon1302]

Beautiful piece.

[@PrestonFrankel]

Beautiful. I don't think I've ever heard a composition quite like this. Then again, I still have much to hear. Thank you for uploading, as always.

[@user-yn6on5rm7g]

I join in, bravo!

[@stavrosmartin07]

You are spoiling us! And I enjoy it so much :) Thank you❤

[@vicb4901]

Theodorakis was more than Zorba the Greek; he was the musical poet of the Aegean and the surrounding lands...

[@walterdennisclark]

Wonderful. Thank you Sergio, once again.