Manolis Kalomiris: first concert in Greece. National School Manifesto

"This is the goal of every truly ethnic music, to build the palace where the nation's soul will reside. Now, if the builder used some foreign materials next to the local ones, that's fine. As long as the palace has its foundations in Greek soil and Greek eyes enjoy it, it is a full-blooded Greek palace. Our national music cannot grow and flourish if it doesn't use the vernacular, vibrant language of the people." On June 11, 1908, Manolis Kalomiris performed as a composer for the first time in Athens in a milestone recital at the Athens Conservatoire. The recital program, written in demotic, caused a stir and became the National school's manifesto. Kalomiris, influenced by the Russian music school movement, was an advocate of ethnic music, based on the folk music of the people but adorned with all the technical knowledge collected from the more musically advanced Germans, French, Russians, and Norwegians […] Kalomiris was associated with the demoticism movement and with significant intellectuals of the time, like Kostis Palamas, Aggelos Sikelianos, and Nikos Kazantzakis.