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Singer Mitsias laments Hadjidakis song ban: 'The people provided the solution'
🇬🇷 Greece /Culture & Society

Singer Mitsias laments Hadjidakis song ban: 'The people provided the solution'

From Ta Nea · () Greek

Translated from Greek, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Singer Manolis Mitsias expressed deep disappointment after being prevented from singing Manos Hadjidakis' songs at an ancient theater in Greece.
  • Organizers cited a ban from the entity managing the composer's work, stating that all performances for 2026, declared the Year of Manos Hadjidakis, were exclusively planned by Georgos Hadjidakis' team.
  • Mitsias stated the audience ultimately provided the solution by singing the songs themselves, emphasizing their ownership of the music.

Singer Manolis Mitsias voiced profound disappointment following an incident at the ancient theater of Dion, where he was prohibited from singing songs by the renowned composer Manos Hadjidakis.

It was a very sad event for me, who grew up artistically with Manos Hadjidakis and Nikos Gatsos and have performed so many of their important songs.

— Manolis MitsiasMitsias described his feelings about the incident.

Mitsias, who has a long artistic connection with Hadjidakis and lyricist Nikos Gatsos, was forced to recite the iconic song "Giannis the Murderer" instead of performing it. He revealed that the entity managing Hadjidakis' work issued a ban via message, preventing the performance of the composer's songs at the concert. Mitsias attempted to contact them to understand the reasons but received no response.

I tried to communicate to see what was happening, but no one picked up the phone.

— Manolis MitsiasMitsias explained his attempt to contact the entity that banned the songs.

During the concert, the audience spontaneously began singing "Giannis the Murderer" and "Tsamikos" when Mitsias started reciting "Giannis the Murderer." Mitsias noted that the people ultimately provided the solution, as these songs belong to them. Agathi Dimitriouka, manager of Nikos Gatsos' work and program curator, read a message from Georgos Hadjidakis' side to the audience. The message stated that the refusal to grant permission was linked to 2026 being declared the Year of Manos Hadjidakis, with all public performances of his works exclusively planned and approved by Georgos Hadjidakis' team.

When I started reciting the song 'Giannis the Murderer,' the audience spontaneously started singing it, and immediately after, they also sang 'Tsamikos.' I couldn't accompany them.

— Manolis MitsiasMitsias recounted the audience's reaction during the concert.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Ta Nea in Greek. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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