On Canto General

by Gail Holst

During rehearsals in Paris with Petros Pandis
Neruda is listening

 Greeks were enthusiastic about Canto General for a number of obvious reasons. The performances were the first concerts giv by Theodorakis on his return to Greece. Tha parallel between the Chilean coup and what happened in Santiago stadium with their own recent history when political prisoners had been herded into the Athens hippodrome, was striking. (...)

Besides, Canto General is a marvellously exciting piece of music. There was enough rhythmic and melodic interest to capture any sympathetic audience, but it was not understood as Axion Esti was understood. It could never become part of Greek popular culture because it couldn't be sung. And despite the obvious reference to Latin American rhythm and instrumentation, and the occasionally brilliant settings of Neruda's text, it doesn't fully belong to the popular culture of Chile. It is, in a sense, an international work.

In terms of his own development as a composer, Canto General represents Theodorakis's most important exploration of rhythm to date. (...) In canto General, Theodorakis has expanded the technique of juxtaposed rhythms into a more abstract concept of rhythmic organisation which still, however, relies on Greek traditional rhythms as well as South American rhythms as its main source of inspiration.

Theodorakis is no longer dealing with variations of traditional patterns so much as exploring the fundamental division of rhythm into groups of twos and threes.

Canto General is not an integrated work in the same way as Axion Esti. Its sections are units which can be performed independently or with some variation in the order of presentation. Its overriding character is determined by its rhythmic writing. It is a unique work in the body of Theodorakis's composition and, I believe, in the repertoire of modern music. It is in some senses a popular work, in others, a contemporary classical composition.

© Gail Holst: Theodorakis. Myth & Politics in Modern Greek Music.

On Canto General | Canto - Genesis | Neruda: Biography | Calendar | Home Page