File photo. [InTime News]
A concert honoring the work of acclaimed Greek poet Nikos Gatsos was disrupted after organizers said they had been denied permission to perform songs featuring Gatsos’ lyrics and music by the late composer Manos Hadjidakis.
The incident took place Sunday evening during singer Manolis Mitsias’ performance at the Hellenistic Theater of Dion in northern Greece. Before several songs were performed, organizers announced that Giorgos Hadjidakis, the adopted son and legal administrator of Manos Hadjidakis’ musical works, had not granted permission for their public performance.
Concert curator and Gatsos estate manager Agathi Dimitrouka told the audience that the refusal was linked to the fact that 2026 has been designated by the Culture Ministry as a commemorative year for Manos Hadjidakis, with events featuring his music already planned and approved by his son’s team.
Mitsias told the audience that, in more than five decades as a performer, it was the first time he had been unable to sing “Giannis o Fonias” (“Giannis the Murderer”), a song originally written for him to perform in 1976. Instead, he recited the lyrics.
