R.I.P. Vangelis

[Zeuhlmate]

Maybe this will help lighten up things, a little.

I wonder what Vangelis thought about it.

[Zappathustra]

RIP. Always loved his music. This one is my favourite on anything he ever colaborated, sadly it's an unkown masterpiece. For me it tops 666 from Aphrodite Child.

Yes, that's a masterpiece. We also recently lost Spathas, whose unique guitar style adorns Phos.

A sad and great loss for the Greek musical world, but obviously Vangelis was a man that broke the narrow frontiers of our homeland.

[dropforge]

That's not fair. In the time it took Vangelis to write a symphony, Jon could have come up with 3 or 4 ideas for projects he could start and set aside.

Savage!

[Mythos]

RIP ...sir

Had Heaven & Hell and Albedo 0.39 on LP back in the day...

[dropforge]

And here is Part 2. The trippy visuals are rather laughably dated, but the music is otherwise (IMHO).

Dated? No way, we need to bring 'em back. Seriously, the stuff he starts doing at 7:15 is extra-groovy. Thanks for posting those!

[Digital_Man]

I was just playing Opera Sauvage earlier while making dinner. I definitely need more of his stuff.

[3LockBox]

That's not fair. In the time it took Vangelis to write a symphony, Jon could have come up with 3 or 4 ideas for projects he could start and set aside.

Umm... that's idears

[dropforge]

I was just playing Opera Sauvage earlier while making dinner. I definitely need more of his stuff.

Get everything he made from '73-79!

[Koreabruce]

I found this little goldmine last year while searching for information about unreleased works of Vangelis: 8 hours and 53 minutes of previously unheard music. Here's what it says on the site:

The Tegos Tapes (1998)

"The Tegos Tapes is an interesting example of an obscure and heretofore unreleased Vangelis soundtrack unknown by many of even his most devoted fans."

"The Tegos Tapes were produced originally by the Greek medical professional Dr. Stergios Tegos, and contain educational examples of his micro neurosurgery work. This VHS set of tapes was not intended for general release to the public as these training videos were mainly intended for student surgeons in training or offered to other micro neurosurgeons via Dr. Tegos exclusively."

"Dr. Tegos asked his close friend Vangelis to create a background soundtrack to accompany these videos, and Vangelis agreed, composing nearly 8 hours of some of his more pleasing and ambient music. Dr. Tegos thought that a background musical score composed and performed by Vangelis himself would ease the monotony and dryness of the subject matter and help the viewer to focus more effectively."

"This music was lost to obscurity for years because of the esoteric and hard-to-find nature of the videos. Now they have been ripped from the original content for all to enjoy. The voiceovers of Dr. Tegos have been removed and you will only hear pure Vangelis."

https://archive.org/details/VangelisTheTegosTapes1998

[dropforge]

Whoa!

[Digital_Man]

Get everything he made from '73-79!

Ok. I take it you don't like the Jon & Vangelis stuff then?

[moecurlythanu]

I found this little goldmine last year while searching for information about unreleased works of Vangelis: 8 hours and 53 minutes of previously unheard music. Here's what it says on the site:

The Tegos Tapes (1998)

"The Tegos Tapes is an interesting example of an obscure and heretofore unreleased Vangelis soundtrack unknown by many of even his most devoted fans."

"The Tegos Tapes were produced originally by the Greek medical professional Dr. Stergios Tegos, and contain educational examples of his micro neurosurgery work. This VHS set of tapes was not intended for general release to the public as these training videos were mainly intended for student surgeons in training or offered to other micro neurosurgeons via Dr. Tegos exclusively."

"Dr. Tegos asked his close friend Vangelis to create a background soundtrack to accompany these videos, and Vangelis agreed, composing nearly 8 hours of some of his more pleasing and ambient music. Dr. Tegos thought that a background musical score composed and performed by Vangelis himself would ease the monotony and dryness of the subject matter and help the viewer to focus more effectively."

"This music was lost to obscurity for years because of the esoteric and hard-to-find nature of the videos. Now they have been ripped from the original content for all to enjoy. The voiceovers of Dr. Tegos have been removed and you will only hear pure Vangelis."

https://archive.org/details/VangelisTheTegosTapes1998

Vaporwave? Is that like Yacht Rock?

[SunRunner2]

Ok. I take it you don't like the Jon & Vangelis stuff then?

Hopefully, that's not what he is inferring. Being such an enthusiastic follower of Vangelis, I would be surprised if he wasn't into their collaborative efforts.

[moecurlythanu]

Hopefully, that's not what he is inferring. Being such an enthusiastic follower of Vangelis, I would be surprised if he wasn't into their collaborative efforts.

Is it hard to believe that Prog-Rock fans don't like Jon Anderson's vocals?

[Mister Triscuits]

Is it hard to believe that Prog-Rock fans don't like Jon Anderson's vocals?

BURN THE HERETIC!!!

[Hobo Chang Ba]

Try the eclectic "Earth", which at the moments is something like a long ago predecessor of Peter Gabriel's "Passion", and "Heaven and Hell". Although the two albums differ from each other, Vangelis revealed his talent for working with orchestral percussion on both.

Cool. Thanks. I have Heaven & Hell (it's next on my list for Vangelis tribute), but ill definitely check out Earth.

[RichardGioaf.]

Cool. Thanks. I have Heaven & Hell (it's next on my list for Vangelis tribute), but ill definitely check out Earth.

You're welcome. By the way, Vangelis' orchestral percussion work can also be heard very well on his avant-garde masterpieces "Beaubourg" (dedicated to Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris) and "Invisible Connections". I personally prefer the latter, on which Vangelis chops up his symphonic preferences to create an entirely abstract album with lots of whimsical experimental sounds and sci-fi vibes.

[realprog]

Jon Anderson Remembers Vangelis (RIP) Friends of Mr Cairo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvGNFKZ9wNE

[TCC]

Descanse en Paz, Maestro!!

[soundsweird]

I had that Socrates LP briefly in the 70's on the Peters label. The sound quality was mediocre, so I got rid of it. Thanks for posting, it sounds much better here. I need to track down the CD.

[Digital_Man]

Jon Anderson Remembers Vangelis (RIP) Friends of Mr Cairo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvGNFKZ9wNE

That's a little misleading since that video was recorded a year before his death. Still a good video though.

[Farpoint Kevin]

The music of Vangelis left a permanent imprint on my life since the mid eighties. So sad that he's left us. So many of my musical heroes are departing.

[vojta]

Oo fun.

As stated above, I'm not terribly familar with his discog, so I might be asking a stupid question but... what albums of his does he employ with many percussives?

Many of his 'Nemo period' (the recording studio he owned in London between '75 and '87) albums feature excellent percussion (China, Soil Festivities, or Mask come to mind) but if I had to point to one item that really showcases Vangelis' genius of blending electronics with acoustic percussion, I would say look no further than the Blade Runner score. No percussion fireworks there, but when a drum hit comes, you can be pretty sure it will make your hair stand up.

[RichardGioaf.]

Many of his 'Nemo period' (the recording studio he owned in London between '75 and '87) albums feature excellent percussion (China, Soil Festivities, or Mask come to mind) but if I had to point to one item that really showcases Vangelis' genius of blending electronics with acoustic percussion, I would say look no further than the Blade Runner score. No percussion fireworks there, but when a drum hit comes, you can be pretty sure it will make your hair stand up.

Blade Runner score (original version from 1982) is probably the best one of all sci-fi film scores ever made. There is just nothing like that soundtrack or movie that are both ahead of its time, much as the book. However, my personal favourite track from the score is drumless Blade Runner Blues. What a chef-d'œuvre by Vangelis!

[RichardGioaf.]

Apropos, Vangelis' percussion tasks could have been even scary.