Vangelis - Mythodea Live in Athens [DVD]

Vangelis's music was the my first audio love in my teenage years and I must profusely thank the late,great Carl Sagan (wouldn't he just have adored this ?) for been the conduit that brought this composing colossus to my attention.I'll never forget how I was absolutely transfixed by the opening theme ("Symphony to the Powers" from Vangelis's 1975 album "Heaven & Hell") of his wonderful "Cosmos" series,when it aired on the BBC back in 1981,and from been a rather musically indifferent 16 year old,I was immediately transformed into a rabid Vangelis aficionado,who could not get enough of music that was imbued with such deep passion and profundity and yet at the same time touched me on almost a spiritual level.It wasn't until I got heavily into classical music in my mid-20's that I discovered the same intrinsic qualities in things like Bach's Passions,Haydn's and Beethoven's Masses,the great Requiem settings and Handel's oratorios.With that kind of cultural hindsight,I understand now that he has inherited much of the qualities that made these composers great.Mind you,I've always felt that Vangelis has the unique way of making you feel that he is taking the very pulse of the Universe through his work and,via his keyboards,liberating themes that have been frozen in time and space for eons.So,you can well imagine that this "Mythodea" of his which marries all that is unique and special in him and allies that to the classical idiom,is sheer serendipity to me and a union made in music Heaven.

The concert setting of the Temple of Zeus in Athens could not be more atmospheric if it tried and those cosmic and Hellenic artefact images projected onto the backdrop are superbly integrated with the music.Whoever edited the footage deserves an oscar,because every fade,cut-away and image-meld is executed with a supremely expert eye and ear,and more than one image will stun you with it's breathtaking beauty.Very well done to all concerned !
Aside from the man himself dominating centre stage at a most imposing keyboard "altar";the other forces involved are the London Metropolitan Orchestra (excellent band,and I'm really developing a crush on the nymph-like harpist,whom the camera obviously loves,and with her partner [they are placed either side of Vangelis] make such an important contribution to the texture of the piece),The National Opera of Greece Choir (bravo ! to you,ladies and gentleman),two timpani ensembles (very dramatic in both a sonic and visual sense) and two sopranos (none other than the world-renowned Jessye Norman and Kathleen Battle;both of whom clearly relish their respective roles,and this constant delight in the gorgeous parts written for them is apparent on their faces throughout ).All these brilliant performers are held on a tight rein by the slim,dapper figure of the conductor Blake Neely who is a most charismatic figure on the podium and his baton seems more akin to a magic wand at times,the way it appears to conjure up musical enchantment at will.Also,kudos to him for a superb orchestral transcription of the original score,that is more than successful in conveying all it's inherent power and majesty.

If you come to this work as an established fan of Vangelis,but with no real experience of the classical repertoire;you may struggle to fully appreciate what is so wonderfully achieved here and I strongly recommend that you watch it through at least twice before passing judgement (or hasty reviews to Amazon !) on it.Although not derivative in the least of any single composer's work,I do hear echoes of Haydn's "Creation" in such things as the magnificent "sunrise" (or "water-rise" on Mars,according to the visuals) crescendo that deservedly gets a standing ovation from the audience.Also,the very fine string and woodwind parts summon up the ghosts of Mozart and Berlioz at times.Verdi's robust spirit also hovers near,and in some of the mightily impressive choral sequences,the "Libera me" from his Requiem is easily brought to mind.The ravishing soprano aria executed so perfectly by Jessye Norman in "Movement 6" has echoes of such sacred gems as Schubert's "Ave Maria" and indeed Mythodea as a whole has a very devotional feel about it,and shorn of the Mars connection could easily be perceived as a modern oratorio in every respect,apart from that of scale and a merciful abscence of tedious recitative ! I wonder,could the great man ever be persuaded to set the text of the Latin Mass ? There is an established "libretto" that would fully exploit his talent to the utmost and on the merits of this current outing,with all it's blatant excellence in the writing for instruments,soloists and choir:we have all the necessary elements already in place that make him eminently suited to been just the man who could whip-up a modern,liturgical firestorm.I'll keep my fingers crossed in the meantime and will take heart in the fact that Haydn didn't write his greatest settings of the Mass until his late 60's,and I think I'm right in saying that our Greek maestro doesn't turn 60 until next March.Plenty of time for us to get up our petition to him !

Whatever your background or taste in music;whether new age or classically conservative,I strongly urge you to buy this DVD immediately.In terms of artistic and production values it has set a benchmark that I don't expect to see surpassed anytime soon,and it is wonderful to finally see in action one of the most exciting composers that the planet Earth can boast in the 21st Century.

P.S:The single (shame !) encore is marvellous and as the horn players of the LMO sound out these now-immortal notes,you will feel moved to join the audience in their joyful recognition of a theme that ran into history two decades ago now on the winged feet of legendary British athletes,and which now takes it's beautiful flight out into a warm Athens evening and heads for the stars.

Simply put, presented in this way and in this setting, the music makes more sense. Any Vangelis fan will be delighted by this DVD, and it's even a bargain price! The extras are no great shakes, but the performance is fabulous.

Vangelis's music was the my first audio love in my teenage years and now as I approach 40 years old,when Classical music is my main preoccupation,this virtual "choral symphony" from the master is truly a marriage made in Heaven,as far as I'm concerned.

The concert setting of the Temple of Zeus in Athens could not be more atmospheric if it tried and those cosmic and Hellenic artefact images projected onto the backdrop are superbly integrated with the music.

Aside from the man himself dominating centre stage at a most imposing keyboard "altar",the other forces involved are the London Metropolitan Orchestra (excellent band and I'm really developing a crush on the nymph-like harpist who the camera obviously loves,and,with her partner [they are placed either side of Vangelis] make such an important contribution to the texture of the piece),two timpani ensembles and two sopranos (none other than the world-renowned Jessye Norman and Kathleen Battle;both of whom clearly relish their respective roles,and this constant delight is apparent on their faces throughout ).All these brilliant performers are held on a tight rein by the slim,dapper figure of the conductor Blake Neely who is a most charismatic figure on the podium and his baton seems more akin to a magic wand at times,the way it appears to conjure up musical enchantment at will.

If you come to this work as an established fan of Vangelis,but with no real experience of the classical repertoire;you may struggle to fully appreciate what is so wonderfully achieved here.Although not derivative of any single composer's work,I do hear echoes of Haydn in such things as the magnificent "sunrise" crescendo that deservedly gets a standing ovation from the audience.Also,the very fine string and woodwind parts summon up the ghosts of Mozart and Berlioz at times.The ravishing soprano aria executed so perfectly by Jessye Norman in movement 6 has echoes of such sacred gems as Schubert's "Ave Maria" and indeed Mythodea as a whole has a very spiritual feel about it,and shorn of the Mars connection could easily be perceived as a modern oratorio in every respect.I wonder,could the great man ever be persuaded to set the text of the Latin Mass ? There is a libretto that would fully exploit his talent to the utmost and on the merits of this outing he would no doubt make a fantastic job of it.Here's hoping !

Whatever your background or taste in music,I strongly urge you to buy this DVD immediately.In terms of artistic and production values it has set a benchmark that I don't expect to see surpassed anytime soon,and it is wonderful to finally see in action one of the most exciting composers that the planet Earth can boast in the 21st Century.

P.S:The single (shame !) encore is marvellous and the shout of recognition that goes up as those oh-so familiar horn motifs sound out is magical .