The organizers of the 18th International Greek Song Festival have dedicated the event to the memory of the Greek artist Demis Roussos, who died in January. His songs will dominate Sunday’s Gala Concert.

About the Festival

The Zgorzelec Festival is dedicated to Greeks whose postwar history became connected with Poland, and especially with the city of Zgorzelec. Music, culinary specialties, exhibitions and even sporting events—all of this is intended to remind Zgorzelec residents that the city has a beautiful Greek chapter in its history.

As usual, the event will begin with the laying of flowers at the memorial plaque on a stone situated in the place most associated with Zgorzelec’s Greek residents—the Greek Boulevard. Representatives of the Greek community, musicians, guests and city authorities will meet there on Friday, July 10, at 5:30 p.m.. Half an hour later, all participants in the ceremony will parade to the municipal stadium, where at 7:00 p.m. the Zgorzelec Poland vs Zgorzelec Greece football match will be played. After the match, the organizers invite everyone to Tawerna Naoussa for a Polish-Greek disco.

Polish-Greek Saturday

There will also be plenty of attractions and Greek touches the following day. Saturday, July 11, will be dominated by the seemingly exotic (though not to Zgorzelec residents!) combination of Greek and Polish rhythms and flavors, which can be enjoyed from 4:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m.—the duration of the Polish-Greek Picnic held in the area around the Municipal Cultural Center.

The day’s main event, however, will be the opening of an exhibition dedicated to Demis Roussos, who died in January and who popularized hits such as “Goodbye My Love, Goodbye,” “My Friend the Wind” and “Forever and Ever” in the 1970s, bringing him worldwide fame. Demis Roussos was also a star of one edition of the Zgorzelec festival, which is why remembering him is the central theme of this year’s festival.

Sunday Gala

The songs of this great legend of Greek music can be heard again (or discovered) on Sunday, July 12, during the Gala Concert of the 18th International Greek Song Festival, which will begin at 3:00 p.m. in the municipal amphitheater. Performances of Demis Roussos’s hits by contestants competing for the festival’s Grand Prix will be one part of the extensive program planned for the day. The Gala Concert will also feature performances by Greek groups from Berlin, Athens and Thessaloniki, a recital by Georgia Sokoli, a meeting with culinary master Theo Vafidis, and concerts by Georgios Papasidorou and Nikos Rusketos with the Orfeusz group. The Polish guests at the concert will be Kabaret Masztalskich, and the evening will conclude with a screening of a film recording Demis Roussos’s concerts (9:15 p.m.).

Honorary patronage of this year’s festival has been assumed by:

  • the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland, Grzegorz Schetyna
  • the Marshal of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Cezary Przybylski
  • the Embassy of the Hellenic Republic in Poland
  • the Mayor of the City of Zgorzelec, Rafał Gronicz.

Program:

  • July 10 /Friday/
    • 5:30 p.m. – Ceremony at the obelisk on the Greek Boulevard
    • 6:00 p.m. – Parade of VIPs, musical groups and friends of Greece (from the Greek Boulevard to the Municipal Stadium)
    • 7:00 p.m. – Zgorzelec Poland vs Zgorzelec Greece football match – Municipal Stadium
    • 8:30 p.m. – Polish-Greek disco – Tawerna Naoussa
  • July 11 /Saturday/
    • from 4:00 p.m. – Polish-Greek picnic featuring musical groups. Children’s stalls, market stalls and food vendors – area in front of the Municipal Cultural Center
    • 5:00 p.m. – Opening of the Demis Roussos exhibition – MCC foyer
  • July 12 /Sunday/
    • from 3:00 p.m. – Gala Concert in memory of Demis Roussos – Municipal Amphitheater
      • concerts and dance performances by groups from Berlin, Dresden, Athens and Thessaloniki
      • Festival Grand Prix competition featuring Polish performers
      • Georgia Sokoli
      • culinary show: Teo Vafidis
      • Georgios Papasidorou
      • Kabaret Masztalskich
      • Nikos Rusketos & Orfeusz
  • Around 9:15 p.m. – screening of a film featuring Demis Roussos’s songs (on a large screen) – Municipal Amphitheater.

Zgorzelec City Hall/ii