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Whatever happened to... Nana Mouskouri
GREEK singer Nana Mouskouri became one of the world's biggest-selling female stars following her hit The White Rose of Athens in 1961.
Crete-born Nana, who
lives with her second husband, music producer Andre Chapelle, in Geneva, has
two children from her first marriage.
Nana, 78, who retired in
2008, was a Member of the European Parliament in the 90s and she has been a
UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 1993.
"I was three years
old when we moved to Athens, where my father was a projectionist at the local
outdoor cinema, which had a big screen in front of our little house. The stage
in front of the cinema screen became my cloud where I could sing.
"I became far-sighted
aged 11 and had to wear glasses. Later, as I became successful, I was advised
to abandon them. I refused because I wanted to remain sincere to myself.
"There were sad
years, which marked my early life. I lived through the Nazi occupation of
Greece and the civil war started when I was 13. This was the saddest period of
my life.
"I studied classical
music at The Greek Conservatory but one day my professor banned me from my
exams when he discovered I was singing in jazz nightclubs.
My parents and my teachers
believed that it was harming my voice and that it was not the sort of music I
should be following. I had to earn a living, so I continued singing jazz and
pop music in night clubs.
"I got noticed on
American Independence Day in 1957 after singing in English on the aircraft
carrier USS Forrestal.
Manos Hadjidakis started
writing songs for me and two of these won first and second prize at the first
Greek Song Festival in 1959.
The White Rose of Athens,
from a German documentary called Greece, Te Land of Dreams, won first prize at
the Berlin Film Festival, and it became my first international success.
"I turned
professional and began to grow as a singer with a broader repertoire of songs.
"I recorded my first
album in 1962, produced by Quincy Jones, and since then, I've released about
three albums a year.
"Then I did my frst
tour with Harry Belafonte and, in 1969, my first concert at the Royal Albert
Hall.
"I loved my BBC2
series, which was shown all around the world. Among the wonderful guests were
Charles Aznavour, John Denver and Julio Iglesias. There is a time for
everything, so the series stopped in the 80s.
"From 1994 to 1999,
I was a Member of the European Parliament because I was convinced I could help
my country.
"I became seriously
involved with UNICEF through Audrey Hepburn's encouragement and then I was
called upon to carry on her work as she became increasingly unwell. I've
witnessed first hand the work they do to relieve the plight of children around
the world.
"I felt it was a
good time to retire when the Olympics were held in Greece in 2004, and I spent
the next four years on a farewell tour.
I don't enjoy retirement,
but it allows me to be with my family. Singing was and remains my first love,
so I may do occasional concerts.
"I only wanted to
discover with my songs if peace and love exists and I discovered that it
does."
