The 300 Spartans – Soundtrack by Manos Hadjidakis

Manos Hadjidakis composed the music for the motion picture “The 300 Spartans” that was released in 1962.

The movie presents the true story of the fight of the 300 Spartans and their King Leonidas against the army of at least 300,000 Persians that wanted to invade Greece.

The heroism of the 300 Spartans and their battle till death is one of the most glorious pages in the Greek history, shaping the course of the West as well, since the sacrifice of Leonidas and his 300 men allowed the Greek cities to prepare themselves to fight the Persians off Greece and the European – to – be land.

The 1962 movie about the Spartan warriors inspired Frank Miller to create his comic book called ” The 300″ that became a film in 2007.

Most people do not know that Manos Hadjidakis composed the music for this movie. The marching of the 300 Spartans against the Persians is a truly impressive music piece, one of the most memorable of the original soundtrack of the movie.

Some of the reviews posted for the movie refer to the haunting music by Hadjidakis, who is one of the most popular and recognizable Greek composers.

“At last, I watched a Hollywood film that tells the story the way it happened… The musical score is by Manos Hadjidakis, capturing the epic history in a bewildering way….”[hr]

“Perhaps, the most memorable part of this film, which is one of the most cherished from my youth, is the marching music of the Spartans written by Manos Hadjidakis…”[hr]

“What is perhaps most impressive and memorable is the music playing in the background as the Spartans march – it is haunting. As Leonidas says – no army in the world marches faster. The Spartans march for several days with almost no rest and the music slows to mirror their exhaustion – the men look haggard, dirty and unshaven – yet they continue to march”.

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