“Voice of Greece”, ERT’s global radio station,will adjust its programming starting Sunday, October 27, to participate in and highlight the commemorative events of Greek expatriates through live connections with expatriate communities and Greek educational institutions around the world.
Teachers, professors, students, and leaders of expatriate organizations will be featured on “The Voice of Greece,” placing special emphasis on the anniversary while also stressing the importance of peace globally.
On Sunday, October 27, a special two-hour tribute will air at 16:00 (Athens time) in honor of October 28, 1940, detailing the events of that day. The voice of Kostas Stavropoulos, who informed radio listeners about the war’s developments, will be included, along with speeches by King George II and Ioannis Metaxas. The first hours of the war will be narrated through the perspectives of poets like Seferis, Vlahos, and Palaiologos. The experience of the war will be explored through poetry, alongside the inspiring voice of Sofia Vempo, who uplifted soldiers and the populace. The program will feature songs from 1940 as well as pieces from the collections “Axion Esti” and “Katakhnia.”
The program will kick off on Monday, October 28, 2024, with songs specifically written to honor the Greek Resistance against the occupier.
Listeners can expect to hear lesser-known incidents from World War II related to maritime activities of the time, Greece’s involvement in the war, the bombing of the ship “ELLAS” in Piraeus by the Germans, and historical documents about the contributions of Greeks from Egypt to the Battle of El Alamein, all broadcast on “The Voice of Greece.”
Throughout the program, Greek music will be tailored to reflect the day’s significance, serving as a tribute to the anti-fascist struggle of the peoples.
Special tributes will feature the victory songs of 1940 with Sofia Vempo, rebetiko music during the occupation, traditional Greek songs from the war, and the partisan songs of Resistance fighters. For the first time, the poignant and timeless album “Albania,” performed by Marinella in 1973, will be presented in English.
Special segments will explore how poets responded to the war, featuring moving poems by Giannis Ritsos, Nikiforos Vrettakos, Angelos Sikelianos, Odysseas Elytis, Kostas Varnalis, and others. They will depict moments of farewell at the trains, the struggles of the women of Epirus, heartbreaking letters from the front, the pain of mothers, the hope for victory, and the sweet anticipation of a brighter future.
Lastly, the Visual Arts will be included in the commemorative program of “Voice of Greece” through a special tribute to the “Degenerate Art” exhibition, which was held in Munich on July 19, 1937, showcasing the efforts of the National Socialist Party in Germany to align politics with aesthetics.
