The Richelieu Amphitheater of the Sorbonne University was packed on the evening of Monday, June 2nd, for a grand tribute to Manos Hadjidakis. The event marked the centenary of the composer’s birth and was organized by the French cultural organization Delphys, in collaboration with the chair “Major Contemporary Strategic Issues” of the Panthéon-Sorbonne University (Paris 1).

The event featured writer and producer of radio and television programs on art and culture, Giorgos Archimandritis, who was also the visionary behind the evening, as well as musician and performer Katerina Fotinaki.

The evening began with a lecture by Giorgos Archimandritis, who spoke about the life and work of Manos Hadjidakis and presented rare archival material from his radio documentary “A Life, A Work: Manos Hadjidakis,” produced for France Culture, the cultural station of French public radio. Audio excerpts included testimonies from Maurice Béjart, Nana Mouskouri, Menis Koumandareas, and Nena Venetsanou, shedding light on the composer’s artistic legacy and personality.

In the second part of the event, Katerina Fotinaki performed emblematic songs by Manos Hadjidakis with exceptional artistic precision and emotional depth, accompanying the readings by Giorgos Archimandritis of poems and prose by the great Greek composer.

The evening was held under the auspices of the Embassy of Greece in France and supported by Andreas and Alexandra Martinou. It included a written greeting from internationally acclaimed Greek film director Costa-Gavras, who sent his message from Los Angeles. Among the attendees were the Ambassador of Greece to France, Antonis Alexandridis, French philosopher Pascal Bruckner, and numerous figures from the academic, artistic, and intellectual circles of the French capital.

Photos: Polyvios Anemoyannis / Hans Lucas