WEEKEND SUMMER CONCERT: KOTSIRAS SINGS MIKROUTSIKOS

On Wednesday July 2 the Paphos (Cyprus) music schools of the 1st High School "Ethnarch Makarios III" and the "Nikolaisi Gymnasium" joined forces with Greek artist Yannis Kotsiras and artistic curator and director, Socrates Terpizis on a journey along the works of the late composer, Thanos Mikroutsikos (Wikipedia) who passed on in 2019. Mikroutsikos set to music famous works of poets and song writers like Yannis Ritsos (Wikipedia), Alkis Alkaios and Constantine Cavafy (Wikipedia).

July 25, 2025 Skaliotis: Γιάννης Κότσιρας στο Αρχαίο Ωδείο Πάφου. (Yannis Kotsiras at the Old Odeon of Paphos). 

Mikroutsikos and Kotsiras had a special personal relationship, working together on entire cycles of songs as Σταυρος του Νοτου (Stavros tou Notou, Southern Cross) set to the poetry of Nikos Kavvadias (Wikipedia), Αυτος ο Ηλιος (Aftos o Ilios, That Sun) and Ενα μαχαιρι (Ena machairi, A Knife) to mention but a few. 

00.00 Μικρες νοθειες (Mikres nothies - Petty fraud)
03.48 Ο Άμλετ της σελήνης (O Amlet tis selinis - Hamlet of the Moon)
08.19 Δεν ειμαι αλλιος (Den imai allios - That's who I am)
11.34 Καραντι (Karanti)
15,22 Θεσσαλονικη (Thessaloniki) *
18.34 Ενα μαχαιρι (Ena machairi - A knife)
23.16 
26.25 Ο τυμβορυχος (O tymvorychos - The graverobber)
30.20 Αυτος ο Ηλιος (Aftos o ilios - That sun)
34.50 Λουνα Παρκ (Luna Park)

38.00 Σαν πλανοδιο τσιρκο (San planodio tsirko - Like an itinerant circus)
41.15 Ροσα (Rosa)
45.40 Παντα γελαστοι (Panta gelasti - Always laughing)
50.19 Ερωτικο (σε μια πιρογα) (Erotiko - Love song (in a canoe)

*Kotsiras relating a personal anecdote relating to this particular piece. His father was radiotelegraph operator in the merchant navy, and so was the poet Kavvadias. Radiotelegraph operators had the tradition of leaving small gifts for their colleagues on the next shift. Kotsiras Senior on relieving Kavvadias in Japan, found a piece of paper with a text written on it. He put it in his passport, but the paper got lost at the customs in Athens. He thought he had noted that the text mentioned somethings about the red light district of Thessaloniki. It may have been the lyrics for this song. Nice personal story, but a rare momentum is now lost. 

The translation of some of the lyrics you can find on our blog Greek Lyrics to English (link). 

On the blog is also a documentary on the composer from the archives of Greek state television broadcaster, ERT (link). 

Bonus addition

Aug. 8, 2025 Θάνος Μικρούτσικος: Γιάννης Κότσιρας - Είσαι η Πρέβεζα και το Κιλκίς - Όσοι Περπάτησαν Μαζί Μου. (Thanos Mikroutsikos: Yannis Kotsiras - Isai i Preveza kai to Kilkis - You are Preveza and Kilkis - Those who walked with me). 

- More on music videos, Thanos Mikroutsikos, Yannis Kotsiras - 
- On Greek Lyrics to English: Kotsiras, Mikroutsikos -