Christos Leontis
A Cretan music composer
“The music paths that I have followed so far are based on elements that regard the Cretan and the Byzantine music while I also use quality lyrics” underlined in an interview to “In-On” magazine the Cretan music composer Christos Leontis.
Through my recordings and setting to music ancient and modern theatrical plays -he continued- I try to analyze culture and approach peoples’ breath.
He also mentions that “I have always been close to people’s agonies and problems while I am not indifferent to the problems of the economic migrants. The present economical crisis brings to my mind lyrics from the collection of our poet K. Varnalis, who writes “The stomach is empty next to the hay, no more than twice fed during the day the most, he woke up at dawn like a bird at his 20 years”. Through this verse our national poet depicts himself as a child who woke up with dreams; however his body and his soul grew old and remained a servant as he was in the beginning».
Christos Leontis was born in Herakleion in Crete while his father was an immigrant from Aivali. His initiation into music during his childhood started as a chanter in the local church while he also participated in local festivals in his area. After finishing school, he moved to Athens in order to attend to the Musical Academy of Athens. In 1963 he was awarded a prize in the Festival of Thessaloniki while at the same year he was employed as the person in charge of the orchestra in the radio of ΕΙΡ earning 1.800 drachmas at that time (5, 2 Euros) per month, a sum that assured respectful living conditions. In 1963-1964 he released his first recording entitled “Katachnia (Mist)”, lyrics by Kostas Virgos and sung by Stelios Kazantzidis and Marinella. The narrator was D. Mirat.
Furthermore, in 1965 the Government of Defectors forbade the transmission of Mikis Theodorakis’ songs from the radio and as sign of protest Christos Leontis resigned from the post of director of the light orchestra of ΕΙΡ. Concerning this particular reaction he mentions “I would resign no matter who the composer was that would suffer such an injustice; still more that it is Mikis”.
This kind of reaction and behavior characterize his whole life till today.
In 1966, he was awarded a prize for his music for the film of Panos Glykofrides “With a gleam in the eyes” in the Film Festival of Thessaloniki.
In 1968, he moved to Paris to study and since he returned till today, his discreet music career demonstrates 13 records, 30 pieces of incidental music to ancient Greek plays in cooperation with the theatre of Carolos Koon, more than 100 pieces of incidental music to performances of Greek and foreign theatrical plays, 500 concerts in Greece and abroad, 20 pieces of incidental music to films and two pieces for the series “The life of Georgios Papandreou” and “Slaughter-House”.
One of his best-known records except “Mist” is the “Kapnismeno Tsoukali” (Smokey Pot) in 1975 by Giannis Ritsos.
A few days ago, more specifically at the end of May 2010, two more recordings were released in CD form “Swallow Seen …” and “Cupid Archangel” by Metronomos.
“Cupid Archangel” is a new series of songs based on the lyrics of D. Lentzos and sung by D. Mitropanos, Ν. Demitratos, Maria Soultatou and Ioanna Forti.
He prepares the music for the “Pluto” by Aristophanes that the Theatre of Art will present in Epidaurus in August directed by Diagoras Chronopoulos.
Additionally, he is going to musically present the work of Giannis Negrepontis (poem) entitled “Preserve Thermopylae”. This piece was written by Giannis Negrepontis in 1970 when he was imprisoned in the island of Leros. In prison he reflected on freedom and dreamt Greek people free.
Back in the 10th edition In-On