Information AboutVangelis |
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Vangelis (pronounced /van-ge-liss/, with a hard "g" as in "get") is a world-renowned New Age and Electronic composer and musician. He was born '''Evangelos Odysseas Papathanassiou''' (/evan-ge-loss odee-say-ass papa-thana-see-ou/) on March 29 , 1943 in Volos , Greece . His best known compositions are the ''. He also composed the anthem of Football World Cup 2002 . A version of "Pulstar", from the album ''Albedo 0.39'', was an early theme for '' ESPN 's'' "SportsCenter" program and served as the news themes for WTVK and WNEV . BIOGRAPHY (1943-1960) Formative years In , Greece . He began composing when 4 years old, and is largely a self-taught musician. He refused to take traditional Piano lessons, and throughout his career did not have substantial knowledge of reading or writing musical notation. He studied painting at the Academy of Fine Arts in Athens. (1961-1972) Early works in bands In the early 1960s he formed the pop group Forminx (sometimes spelled "Formynx"), which became very popular in Greece. During the Student Riots in 1968 he moved to Paris and formed Progressive Rock band Aphrodite's Child with Demis Roussos and Loukas Sideras . They had a hit single in Europe called "Rain and Tears", and are considered pivotal in the development of progressive rock and concept albums, especially because of their ground-breaking composition 666 (album) . In 1972 the group was disbanded, although Vangelis has since produced several albums and singles for Roussos as well as Roussos contributing vocals to the Blade Runner soundtrack. (1973-1980) Beginning of solo career '' (1977)]] In 1973 , Vangelis began his solo work by writing scores to two films by French Filmmaker Frédéric Rossif . His first official solo album was ''Earth'', also recorded in 1973 . At about the same time, he rehearsed for a couple of weeks with another prog-rock band, Yes . Although he never joined the band (they ended up hiring Patrick Moraz ), he became friends with singer Jon Anderson , with whom he later worked on many occasions. After moving to by Carl Sagan . He also contributed as a producer and keyboard player to the recordings of Greek rock band Socrates Drank the Conium's album ''Phos'', which was perhaps their most important release. (1981-1999) Work in film and commercial success In 1981 Vangelis wrote the score for '' Chariots Of Fire .'' Though the electronic score might be considered, in hindsight, ill-suited to a period piece, it worked beyond anyone's expectations. The movie won a half-dozen awards, including Best Picture of the year. Vangelis himself won the Academy Award For Original Music Score . The opening theme of the film (appropriately titled "Titles" on the soundtrack) was released as a single in 1982, topping the Billboard chart for for one week after climbing steadily for over five months. Only one other instrumental track, 1985's "" Miami Vice Theme " has topped that chart since. Perhaps inspired by the success of "Chariots of Fire", in 1983, director Peter Weir used previously released Vangelis music in his film " The Year Of Living Dangerously ", most notably "L'enfant" from 1979's " Opera Sauvage ." In '' (1992). He also scored many of the undersea documentaries of Jacques-Yves Cousteau . Collaboration in 1981 and 1986 with Italian singer Milva , achieving a large success especially in Germany with the albums ''Ich hab'keine Angst'' and ''Geheimnisse''. In 1992, France made him a Knight Of The Order Of Arts And Letters . '', whose atmosphere was greatly enhanced by Vangelis' original score.]] During the 1980s and 1990s , Vangelis and Jon Anderson released several albums together as Jon & Vangelis . (2000-present) Later days In 2001 he released ''Mythodea'', an orchestral rather than electronic piece that was originally written in 1993, and used by the NASA as the theme for the Mars missions. In 2004 he released ''Alexander'', a CD soundtrack of his score for Oliver Stone 's movie '' Alexander '', continuing his involvement with projects related to his homeland. DISCOGRAPHY '' (1975)]] '' (1976)]] '' (1978)]] '' (1979)]] Studio albums
Soundtrack albums
Limited edition releases
Collaboration albums
Compilation albums
Promotional albums Bootleg albums
EPs/Singles (with exclusive material)
EXTERNAL LINKS
=See also=
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