Michel Elefteriades

Michel Elefteriades
Michel Elefteriades
Background information
Birth name	Michel Elefteriades
Born	22 June 1970 (1970-06-22)
Origin	Beirut, Lebanon
Genres	World music
Occupations	Politician Producer Composer Arranger
Labels	elef.Records
Associated acts	Galvez Tony Hanna Hanine Y Son Cubano Chehade Brothers Wadih El Safi José Fernandez Demis Roussos Aleph Tania Saleh Nahawand Bilal, the Gipsy Prince The Oriental Roots Orchestra The National Orchestra of Nowheristan

Michel Elefteriades (Μιχαήλ Ελευθεριάδης in Greek) (born 22 June 1970) is a Greek-Lebanese politician, artist, producer and businessman. He is noted in the Arab world for his eclectic style, as well as his unorthodox beliefs and opinions, which have generated controversy and ignited passionate responses from his supporters and detractors alike.

Education and background

With a Lebanese mother and a father of Byzantine Greek descent (who is the grandnephew of Saint Chrysostomos Kalafatis, Metropolitan Bishop of Smyrna), the Lebanese born Elefteriades speaks six languages and is well traveled. He studied Fine Arts and Advertising in the city of Nantes, France, and holds a Masters Degree in Graphic Design and Communication Arts from the Lebanese Academy of Fine Arts (ALBA).

Music and show business career

Elefteriades is an author and composer of more than 120 songs for such European and Arab artists as: Tony Hanna, Demis Roussos, Jean Jacques Lafon, Nahawand, Hanine Y Son Cubano, El Chato, Galvez, Jose Fernandez, as well as a collective work featuring Saber el Ruba’i, Moen Shraif, Wadih El Safi, and Mohamad el Mazem. Elefteriades is considered an Arab pioneer of World Music fusion.^{[citation needed]}

As a music producer and song arranger, some of his creations are considered successful musical experiments in the Arab world. A few of these are:

• Hanine Y Son Cubano.
• Wadih El Safi in duo with Jose Fernandez.
• Demis Roussos & the Oriental Roots Orchestra.
• Tony Hanna & the Yugoslavian Gipsy Brass Band.

In 1999, Elefteriades founded the “Mediterraneo Byblos International Festival”, and was its director from 1999 to 2003. He wrote, composed and directed the 2004 “The Journey of Four Songs”, a musical for the Baalbeck International Festival.

He has directed a number of music videos, for such artists as Galvez, Demis Roussos, Tony Hanna, The Chehade Brothers, Hanine Y Son Cubano, Nahawand, Tania Saleh, José Fernandez, Abdel Karim Chaar, Yusra, Rom Bakhtale, Tino Favazza. Elefteriades has also directed documentaries about Tony Hanna and on the life of Nahawand.

In 2003, Elefteriades founded the "Beirut Music Hall", an 800-seat venue specializing in a unique concept that made it a night-clubbing destination in the Middle East.

Elefteriades is founder and co-owner of “Elef.Records”, a Warner Music label which has produced the following albums:

• Tony Hanna & the Yugoslavian Gipsy Brass Band
• Tony Hanna & the National Orchestra of Nowheristan
• Mounir El Khawli – The Dragon of Tarab
• Hanine Y Son Cubano – Arabo-Cuban and 10908
• Jose Fernandez – Makhlouta
• Wadih El Safi & Jose Fernandez
• Tania Saleh
• The Chehade Brothers – A Bridge Over the Mediterranean
• Jose Gálvez & the National Orchestra of Nowheristan
• Lautaris
• Nahawand.
• L’Empereur chante – self-produced

Fine arts

As a painter, his works have been presented at several collective exhibitions in France, Germany and Lebanon. In 1995, he presented The Wailing Wall, a 10x2 meters piece of art, at a special edition of the Salon des Artistes Décorateurs that took place in the Beirut Central District (instead of its customary location at Paris’ Grand Palais). This showing produced such controversy that it required special protection. Afterward, Elefteriades decided to drop painting completely.^{[citation needed]}

Writing

Elefteriades is the author of two novels, one of which was banned in the Arab world. Starting in 1994, he was editor for over a year of a weekly review on “Crazy Thoughts and Ideas” in An-Nahar, Lebanon’s leading newspaper.^{[citation needed]}

Politics

Elefteriades has engaged in political activism from the age of 15. He was an extreme left-wing militant growing up in the hostile political environment of east Beirut, which was under the control of right-wing Christian militias during the Lebanese civil war.^{[citation needed]} Later, Elefteriades committed himself to the political movement of then Prime Minister, General Michel Aoun (1989).^{[citation needed]}

The M.U.R.

An M.U.R. poster

Main article: M.U.R.

On 13 October 1990, Syrian forces launched a massive attack on the Lebanese army; defeated General Aoun; and occupied what still remained of Lebanon’s free territory. Elefteriades initially fled to France. In 1991, he came back to Lebanon and founded the M.U.R. (Unified Movements of the Resistance), which he led until 1994. The M.U.R. was a clandestine, armed group dedicated to fighting Lebanon's occupation by foreign armies. Elefteriades was often involved in organizing general strikes designed to paralyze the country. The M.U.R. was considered an illegal organization and its activities were implemented secretively.

During this period, Elefteriades was the intended victim of two assassination attempts. The first one destroyed his car with a booby-trap; the second attempt targeted in an armed ambush. He left Lebanon to live in France and Cuba from 1994 until 1997.

Elefteriades was active in Lebanon’s Cedar Revolution:^{[citation needed]} He co-organized, ih April 2005, the National Unity Festival’s mega-concert that took place in downtown Beirut celebrating “Independence 05”; and,in May, he co-organized the celebration of the return to Lebanon –after 15 years of exile– of Michel Aoun.^{[citation needed]}

Activism

On 8 October 2007, during a press conference held in one of his shuttered Beirut restaurants (shut down on the date which commemorated Che Guevara's capture 40 years earlier), Elefteriades launched a public campaign called "We Won’t Pay Lebanon’s Odious Debts". The campaign was meant to exercise pressure on the state to take action on Lebanon’s unprecedented public debt of about 40 billion US Dollars, which, at the time of the press conference, was the highest debt to GDP ratio in the world. The main objective of the campaign was to raise awareness inside and outside of the country about the nature of Lebanon's loans with the end goal of abolishing its debt. (This odious debt was incurred between 1993 and 2005, while Lebanon was under foreign occupation.) As a result of his activities, the Association of Banks in Lebanon called for the prosecution of Elefteriades, viewing him as a threat to Lebanon's financial stability.

Social commitments

In spring 2005, Elefteriades co-organized a concert in Beirut, presenting some of the biggest names in Arab music: Nancy Ajram, Wadih El Safi, Myriam Fares, Ramy Ayach, Marwan Khoury, Amal Hijazi The entire proceeds of the event were forwarded, through the United Nations, to the South East Asia Tsunami victims. That same year he organized a free concert by the National Orchestra of Nowheristan at the UNESCO Palace, in collaboration with the United Nations, to celebrate the International Day of Peace.

In 2006, he was a founding member of Pan-Arab Cultural Icons (or WAYYAK), a pan-Arab NGO whose stated mission is to build bridges with disadvantaged Arab neighborhoods through exposure to Arab celebrities.

Interest in Roma culture

As a "tziganologist" who wrote a study about Arab Gypsies published by Charles University in Prague, Elefteriades has identified closely with the Roma people (Gypsies). He studied their language and has gained the trust of the Arab Gypsy communities.^{[citation needed]} He has worked on establishing contacts with Roma activists from around the world and launched the career of Bilal, the "Gipsy Prince," the notable Dom singer.

Nowheristan promotion

Emperor Michel I of Nowheristan

Elefteriades envisioned a new social, philosophical, political and cultural approach in his 'founding' of a new nation he named “Nowheristan”, which is dedicated to justice, liberation, and equality. The proclamation of the "Great Empire of Nowheristan" received the support of the United Nations and the Lebanese Minister of Culture. Thousands from around the world having applied for citizenship.

Elefteriades', with his self-styled title, "His Imperial Highness Michel I of Nowheristan," continues to promote his creation with articles, interviews and PR in numerous international media, including: CNN, BBC, France 3 Méditerranée, France 24, TV5, TVE2, Al-Jazeera, Los Angeles Times, Der Spiegel, La Vanguardia, Paris-Match, L'Orient Le Jour, Daily Star, Hurriyet, Al-Ahram, Asharq Al-Awsat.

External links

• Elef Records
• The Great Empire of Nowheristan