A conversation with Nana Mouskouri
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dickson.jeremy@dailygleaner.com
Published Friday June 1st, 2007
Appeared on page C1
When I was told I would be interviewing Nana Mouskouri, I immediately thought of her trademark black-rimmed glasses and my parents' old vinyl collection that contains a number of her records.
I also asked myself, 'is Nana Mouskouri still singing?'
The truth is, I've never really known much about the famous Greek singer and I haven't heard her distinctive voice since my parents played those old records when I was a kid.
So what happened to Nana Mouskouri? Well, she has been singing and performing around the world to millions of adoring fans for over 40 years now, but at 72 years old, Mouskouri says her latest tour will be her last.
Ioanna Mouskouri, or 'Nana' as she is best known, recently took time out of her busy schedule to speak with The Daily Gleaner from her home in Switzerland.
Mouskouri, who always wanted to be a singer despite having one abnormal vocal chord, says she is happy to be going out on top.
"I wanted to go before my voice lets me down," she says. "It was a hard decision, but I'm very proud I made it."
For those who aren't aware, Mouskouri is the biggest-selling female artist of all time, globally, with more than 300 million records sold.
She has recorded more than 400 albums and sung in more than 15 languages with everyone from Harry Belafonte to Bob Dylan. She has won a plethora of awards and gained recognition as a UNICEF spokesperson and as a member of the European Parliament from 1994 to 1999.
After a distinguished career, Mouskouri decided to embark on a lengthy farewell tour in 2005. It has taken her to all corners of the globe and will end in 2008 with a final performance in Greece.
She is currently swinging through Canada and on Tuesday, June 5 she will say goodbye to her Maritime fans at the Aitken University Centre.
"The world is very big and I thought it was right to say goodbye to everybody," she says, "and why should you go to just big places and not small places? People are the same everywhere."
Mouskouri first toured Canada in 1965 with Harry Belafonte and came here partly because she had a Canadian manager at the time, but she instantly connected with her Canadian audience.
"I have a great relationship with Canada," Mouskouri says. "I toured Canada much like a Canadian singer and I created a very happy and loyal audience there, but I will miss them," she says.
Mouskouri was born on the island of Crete, in 1934, but moved with her family to Athens when she was three.
She displayed a gift for music at a very young age, despite a flawed vocal chord that gave her a raspy speaking voice. Mouskouri eventually began singing lessons at age 12 and never looked back.
In 1950, she was accepted to the Athens Conservatoire where she studied classical music and opera, but was expelled eight years later when a professor found out she sang in a jazz group on the side.
Despite the setback, Mouskouri created a buzz when she won first prize at the 1959 Greek Song Festival for her performance of a song written by the famous Greek composer Manos Hadjidakis. Singing and recording opportunities soon flooded in and the rest, as they say, is history.
Mouskouri eventually went on to sing in many different musical genres including jazz, classical, opera, pop, French cabaret, religious and folk music.
She sang songs of peace, love, freedom and happiness - all things she struggled to find as a child growing up during the Nazi occupation of Greece in the Second World War.
"I always tried in my songs to give a message of what I missed in my childhood. I missed the love that a child needs and all my life I have searched for it," she says.
When Mouskouri speaks of war, love, childhood and freedom, her voice cracks with passion and emotion. Mouskouri knows she's accomplished much in life, but still remains truly humble.
"The years have gone by fast, but a lot has happened. I was successful, but I always stayed grounded," she says.
"Success makes you think you can rule the world, but I stayed very real in my life. I always felt I had to do better work. I had to look after my children and my business with reason and logic."
It was reason that attracted her to UNICEF in the 1960s and her work for them became official in 1993 when she was appointed a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador.
"When I was involved with UNICEF it made a big difference because you never forget what happens to you when you grow up in the war. We see so many tragedies every day working with UNICEF, but I'm a very optimistic person."
Mouskouri says she will continue to work on behalf of children's organizations in the future and says more needs to be done today to restore injustice.
"It is a responsibility that the world today has much more than before," she says. "We had to rebuild all that was lost from the war and now people are attempting to destroy all that we built."
Her voice wavers again with feeling.
Mouskouri and her songs have resonated with many different people over the years, but women, in particular, have been drawn to her the most.
"Female singers usually have male admirers, but in my life I was very proud I had more women admirers than men."
Mouskouri says it was also a different time for mothers in the late 1960s.
"I was a young mother in those days, but mothers were looked at differently then. We were not supposed to be sexy and strong," she says.
"I was a simple girl at the time, being a mother, having children and singing about peace and love.
"But those songs became symbolic to many families and people, so maybe this is the reason I have been around for so long."
According to Mouskouri, longevity is directly related to respect - respect she received from her crews in the beginning and still warrants from a younger generation that works with her today.
"I've always had people that believed in me and I'm grateful for that.
"I did the best that I could, I paid my dues, but for music now to go further, it is up to the young ones."
One young one looking to leave a mark is Mouskouri's own daughter, Hélène, who has launched her own singing career and gained respect despite comparisons to her mother.
"It's hard for a daughter with a well-known parent," Mouskouri says, "but now she's at the point where she's very proud because she started by herself."
Mouskouri says she plans to step into a managerial role for her daughter and she hopes to give guidance and train other young singers starting their careers.
"I don't want them to be victims of certain people who just want to make money and if they get success, I don't want them to throw it all away."
Helping others could be a theme in a book about Mouskouri's life and it just might be.
The singer recently wrote an autobiography that will come out at the end of the year.
"I have written it because of my last tour and I want to show other children of war that if I can make it, so can they if they believe and have courage."
Mouskouri says a good day for her now is when she doesn't hear about too many catastrophes.
"I'm very influenced by what's happening around the world, but it's sad to see the world destroyed."
Despite her worries and her own bad days, Mouskouri says she remains upbeat.
"When I wake up in the morning, I say I will try to do something useful and positive. I am a human being, and sometimes it's hard, but I always try to make a good day out of a gloomy one."
Mouskouri may be saying goodbye to her own performing career, but people shouldn't be surprised if they hear her again. It all depends on her daughter.
"I want to do a record with my daughter and we are about to work on something, but I have to wait until she agrees with it fully. If I ever sing again after the tour it will be because of Hélène."
Nana Mouskouri's final Maritime performance begins at 8 p.m. at the Aitken Centre. She will sing songs from her most recent CD, I'll Remember You along with many of her hits.
After speaking with Mouskouri, there is no denying her talent, grace and legacy.
Not to mention her vast collection of eyeglasses. Mouskouri laughs when asked about her trademark spectacles, but, as with her life, she offers something more.
"There was a time when managers didn't want me to wear them, but I needed them to see," she says. "Now I have hundreds of pairs of glasses, but I give many of them away to charities."
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