In Greece, as in many other European countries and parts of the rest of the world, the year 1821 was marked by the beginning of a liberation movement. After more than 350 years of oppression by Ottoman rule, the peoples demanded freedom from foreign rulers.

While Greece decoupled itself from European events as a result of the conquest of Constantinople in 1453 by the Ottomans, the fertile period of the Renaissance began under the influence of the artists and scholars who had fled from Byzantium, first in Italy and later in large parts of Europe. The Italian Renaissance was, in principle, a declaration of love for the lost Greco-Roman legacy of the Classical period. In the course of the resulting heyday for architecture, painting and science, music was not unaffected by the influence of the Greek ideal.

In 1600, Jacopo Peri's "Euridice" was the first opera to be performed in Florence. The origin of the opera goes back to the efforts of the "Camerata fiorentina", which campaigned for a revival of the form of ancient tragedy. But while the opera has its roots in ancient tragedy and comedy, the little madrigals, arias and songs were more inspired by the tradition of lyrical singing, following the example of the "Aoids“ (ancient singers), who used to accompany their songs with a lyra.

 

The Renaissance brought the Baroque period and finally the Enlightenment and the study of antiquity. Joachim Johann Winkelmann's (1717-1768) enthusiasm for Greek aesthetics arose during his visit to the August the Strong's antiques collection in Dresden. His key work “The History of Ancient Art”, published in Dresden in 1764, marked the beginning of the classical period in German-speaking countries. The Greek ideals again greatly influenced poetry and music. All of these (humanistic) influences certainly contributed to the outbreak of the French Revolution. In the 19th century and the transition to Romanticism, many artists began to reflect on their identity and their roots in the newly formed Europe. The influence of the ideal of beauty of ancient Greece, which had become visible through excavations in Italy and Greece, could not leave unaffected the composers and poets of the romanticism of the early 19th century.

Franz Schubert composed music for more than thirty lyrical poems by Goethe, Schiller or his friend Johann Meyrhofer, exclusively on topics from Greek mythology.

Lord Byron wrote his poem "Child Charolds Pilgrimage" in 1812. He left England and traveled via Portugal and Spain to Italy, from where he finally reached Greece. This symbolic "pilgrimage", as he called it, is representative of Europe's youth in search of their roots.

Lord Byron was not the only poet, however, because long before him in 1797, Friedrich Hölderlin wrote in his “Hyperion” about a man who, enthusiastic about the spirit of Greece, wanted to participate to the war for the liberation of Greece from Ottoman yoke. Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote the drama "Hellas" in 1921, from which the famous quote "We are all Greeks" comes from. Wilhelm Müller (also known as "Greek-Müller") and the polish poet Juliusz Słowacki are still some of the numerous romantics who contributed to the struggle of the greek people. The list of the "Philhellenes" is long. From England and Italy to Poland and Russia the ideal of „ Hellas" emerged all over Europe and run since then like a red thread through music and poetry all over the world.

 

The 200th anniversary year since the outbreak of the Greek Revolution (1821-2021) is therefore a lucky circumstance that should inspire us to reflect on the common European cultural heritage: „Schöne Welt, wo bist du?“ ("Beautiful world, where are you?“) wrote Friedrich Schiller, and Franz Schubert set these words of longing to music.

It is therefore a pleasure and a concern for us to be able to present some of the most beautiful songs of Philhellenism from all over the world in this important year as part of our “Song of Hellas” project.

 

We would like to thank the Committee "Greece 2021", as the project is being carried out under their auspices and Sponsorship. We would also like to express our sincere thanks to the twenty-five artists who, with true idealism and love for this poetry and music, unselfishly dedicated their talent and skills to the ideal of “Hellas”.

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November 2021