Giorgos Sarantaris and Melissanthi: A Musical Correspondence

For the second year in a row, “Musical Correspondence” presents a hypothetical melodic conversation between two poets, through a new set of musical poems. This project was inspired by and revolves around the unique relationship between Giorgos Sarantaris and the poetess Melissanthi (Eve Chougia-Skandalaki).

The spark for the commissioning of these songs in the context of “Musical Correspondence” was poetry itself, whereas its main focus is the woman’s position in Sarantaris’s poetry, in combination with his well-documented love for the poetess.

The “amorous” relationship between the two poets is reflected in the letters they have exchanged, which stand witness to an “amorous friendship” that was of special importance – at least for Sarantaris. In one of his letters, following Melissanthi’s attempt to interrupt their close connection, Sarantaris writes “if I cease to see you, I will see nothing.”

Two young composers, Kostas Makras and Nefeli Liouta, set this correspondence to music, sketching out an imaginary dialogue of this “amorous friendship.” Kostas Makras sets Giorgos Sarantaris’s words to music and Nefeli Liouta does the same with Melissanthi. The songs will be performed by Apostolos Kitsos and Nefeli Liouta respectively.

The Contemporary Music and Poetry Cycle provides support for new compositions of song cycles by established or emerging composers. The program presents units of new songs that draw from particular moments in the history of world poetry. The Hellenic Project suggests the themes that our composers then use as their inspiration.

In Februrary 2019, in a similar concert, we attempted for the first time to present the emotional imprint of the lovers’ dialogue between Kostas Karyotakis and Maria Polydouri. Two song cycles by Kostas Makras and Chrysostomos Karantoniou were presented, showcasing how the two composers were moved, inspired, and narrated in their own musical tropes the intimate relation between the two poets.