Hundreds of people, some carrying flowers, gathered on Monday at Athens Cathedral to pay their final respects to Greek composer and politician, Mikis Theodorakis, who was an integral part of the Greek political and musical scene for decades.
Mourners sang his songs, while a German composer and former associate of the legendary Greek artist, Henning Zierock, performed iconic melodies on his guitar in an impromptu concert.
Theodorakis, who died on Thursday at the age of 96, is lying in state in a cathedral chapel for three days ahead of his burial on the southern island of Crete. His body arrived on Monday after a nearly two-hour delay amid a dispute over burial details.
READ MORE: Legendary Greek composer, Mikis Theodorakis, to be buried in Crete.
Over the weekend, his family reportedly lifted their objections to him being buried on Crete in accordance with his last wishes. A court had temporarily halted burial plans pending a resolution of the dispute.
Theodorakis’ daughter had said earlier that he would be buried near Corinth in the village of Vrahati, where he maintained a holiday home. But a 2013 letter Theodorakis had written to the mayor of the town of Chania in Crete was made public, in which the composer said he wanted to be buried in the nearby cemetery of Galatas, despite his family’s disagreement.
People wait outside the Athens Cathedral. All photos: AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris. 
Pallbearers carry the coffin of late Greek composer.
READ MORE: Tributes flow for famed composer Mikis Theodorakis.
Theodorakis was as well-known in Greece for his political activism as for his musical career. He penned a wide range of work, from somber symphonies to popular TV and film scores, including for “Serpico” and “Zorba the Greek.”
He is also remembered for his opposition to the military junta that ruled Greece from 1967 to 1974, a time during which he was persecuted and jailed and his music outlawed.
READ MORE: Legendary Greek composer, Mikis Theodorakis, dies aged 96.
A woman places a flower on a coffin as people pay their final respects. Photos: AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris. 
Photo: InTime News.
Greece’s Communist Party said over the weekend that Theodorakis’ body will lie in state beginning on Monday, and a “farewell ceremony” will be held Wednesday, before the late composer is flown to Crete. The church service and burial will be on Thursday.
Theodorakis’ body will lie in state from 10 am to 7 pm on Tuesday and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Wednesday.
READ MORE: Greek communities across Australia mourn the loss of the legendary Mikis Theodorakis.
Source: AP News.
