Sonate au clair de lune

Yannis Ritsos was born in Greece on May 1, 1909, into a family of landowners. His youth was marked by economic ruin, family tragedies, and long stays in sanatoriums. Close to the Greek Communist Party, he combined poetry with political activism and linked the legacy of Surrealism to the vibrant forces of popular culture. His struggles against the fascist right, imprisonment, and exile did not prevent him from producing a body of work of the highest order. He passed away in November 1990.