Lost Songs

LOST SONGS – 14 previously unreleased works by Mikis Theodorakis
Arranged and performed by Henning Schmiedt

To mark what would have been Mikis Theodorakis’ 100th birthday on 29. July 2025, Intuition is releasing a very special album: LOST SONGS – fourteen previously unpublished compositions by the world-renowned Greek composer, presented here for the first time in a remarkable solo piano version by Henning Schmiedt. The Berlin-based pianist and composer describes these long-forgotten melodies as follows: “These tunes are so beautiful, it’s hard to believe they didn’t already exist. Now we know – they did.”

A remarkable moment took place in 2009 at Mikis Theodorakis’ studio in Athens:

Henning Schmiedt personally played his piano arrangements of the LOST SONGS to Theodorakis himself. Some of the melodies sparked the composer’s memory, while others did not – but he listened attentively, offered comments and gave guidance that directly influenced the final versions of the pieces. As such, LOST SONGS can be considered a posthumous release with the composer’s blessing. These pieces offer a glimpse into Theodorakis’ expressive power and artistic maturity from a very young age – most of the LOST SONGS were written in the early 1940s and provide a compelling window into the formative years of one of the most important composers of the 20th century. LOST SONGS will be released on CD and 180-gram vinyl to commemorate his 100th birthday.

Liner Notes

Henning Schmiedt: "I still remember the year 2007 very well. Asteris Kutulas, a close confidant and longtime companion of Mikis Theodorakis, approached me back then. Some time earlier, he had discovered something special in Theodorakis’ archive: handwritten scores, previously unknown works by the composer. My curiosity was instantly piqued.

The archive is now housed in the 'Lilian Voudouri' Music Library at the Athens Concert Hall. During a stay in the city, I took two days to immerse myself in the collection. A friendly staff member laid out copies of the facsimiles for me. Their condition varied: some were mere fragments, others surprisingly well-developed. A few of the sheets were dated — early 1940s. It felt as though I was gazing into a musical diary from the youth of a genius.

I sat down at the piano, pressed the record button on my tape machine, and slowly began to explore these forgotten melodies. In August 2009, Asteris Kutulas and I took the recordings to Mikis’ home on Epifanous Street in Athens. I’ll never forget that meeting. Mikis was in high spirits, open and curious. We listened to the music together; I shared my thoughts on the arrangements, and Mikis warmly commented on the vocal lines. In those moments, the past felt very close. Mikis instantly recognized some of the melodies, while others amazed him — as if he were encountering a forgotten part of himself. The quality of these early compositions was breathtaking in their depth, maturity, and musicality.

Many years passed without finding the right context for a release. ‘Mikis 100’ — marking this year’s centennial — finally brings this treasure to light, as a solo piano album with a guest contribution by Dominic Miller. Especially moving: a previously unreleased recording of ‘Der Lindenbaum’, sung by Mikis himself.

This music is more than a rediscovery. It is a journey into the heart and early creative years of one of the greatest composers of our time. And for me: a deeply personal gift."

Asteris Kutulas: Between 1985 and 1996, while working in the Theodorakis archive in his home in the Greek coastal town of Vrachati, I discovered more than 150 previously "forgotten" works by the composer, both sketches and finished compositions, including four quartets, works for piano, violin, symphonic orchestra and choir, as well as several songs, fourteen of which are presented here to the public for the first time.

In my catalogue of Theodorakis' works, published in 1998, the entire oeuvre of the best-known "unknown" composer of the 20th century was revealed in all its abundance and diversity - a composer who wrote music continuously from the age of 12 until his old age: songs, chamber music, symphonies, ballets, oratorios, operas, film music; and who said of himself: "I am a German composer born on the shores of the Aegean and a Cretan songwriter who lived in Paris".

The composer, pianist and long-time Theodorakis collaborator, Henning Schmiedt, has arranged these newly discovered melodies. During an encounter on 31 August 2009 in Theodorakis' Athens studio, Schmiedt played his piano versions to the composer. Theodorakis rediscovered and commented enthusiastically on his youthful compositions, most of which date from the early 1940s. We are therefore dealing here with a posthumous release of fourteen unknown songs in a piano version approved by Theodorakis. Schott Music, Intuition Records, Henning Schmiedt, Ina Kutulas and I agree that we could hardly make a more beautiful gift to the Greek master for his 100th birthday.