When I moved stateside from Puerto Rico in 1981, it was a real scary time in my life. Trying to assimilate to a new environment and learn English was a such an immense struggle for me at 6 years old. But one thing I never had to struggle with was music. Up to that point in my life music to me was what I grew up with culturally which consisted of nearly 100% Afro-latin music. So you can imagine what it must have been like to hear something so completely foreign as American radio. And even though I didn't understand what most artists were singing about, it didn't really matter because I felt it. However, one of the biggest impacts for me musically was Chariots of Fire. I was a latchkey kid and would pass the time watching television after school when one day the movie Chariots of Fire popped up. That opening scene with the runners on the beach and Vangelis' incredible score slowly building up had such a huge impact on me. There were no words, just beautiful sounds that tugged at my heart and that's all that was needed. It was a pivotal moment that would eventually become both my obsession with synths and composing music. He was a pioneer and one that influenced so many people with such incredibly moving music. Godspeed, Evangelos. Thank you and bless you.
F****** COVID I can't believe... We did a tread a few days ago just to salute him. I'm devastated. I came to appreciate Vangelis' music late in my life, but although late, it was love at first sight. Hearing Tears in Rain, crying and thanking this amazing master and human being for everything he left us. ["... time to die ..."] Time to rest maestro... RIP Titan... Last edited: May 20, 2022
it seems a stupid thing but for a lifetime (and still today) I ate this brand of Italian pasta (Barilla) only because for many years the commercial spot was signed by one of his magnificent compositions "Hymne 1979" .. χαῖρε Maestro
You could look at it another way? You were young enough and adventurous enough to be around, appreciate and experience when he and all music, contemporary rock, anthemic music, ambient music and all things creative were going in all directions and the music world was a perpetual cycle of new things. It is always sad when we lose a forefather/frontrunner of anything great but without Vangelis' contribution, the music world would be sadder still.
Yeah I think you're right. I guess we're sad because his music has been with us our entire lives (well, some of us anyway), and this suddenness just reminds us of our mortality and the fact that there's nothing more coming. We don't feel this way about, say, Mozart, but instead we rejoice his musical genius.
We shouldn't be sad, great artists never die, they remain immortal through their works. This is probably why we are artists: the will to live forever beyond the expiration date of our body. Vangelis is not dead He just retired to a secret island in the Caribbean, along with Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald and Ennio Morricone
"I don't want to achieve immortality through my work; I want to achieve immortality through not dying. I don't want to live on in the hearts of my countrymen; I want to live on in my apartment." -- Spider Robinson *edit:* Sorry, I'm still reeling from the shock, I'll quit this shit now.
Welcome to the independent Elsewhere Vangelis site. With this unofficial fan project we hope to share our passion for the music of Vangelis, provide an introduction into the broad scope of his work, as well as keep you informed on all the latest news out there. We try to confirm and verify all of that as well as we can. http://elsew.com List of spotted instruments http://elsew.com/data/synths.htm
