The Greek composer Vangelis passed away this Tuesday after more than 50 years dedicated to music. His career left great works for the history of cinema, such as the soundtracks for Chariots of Fire, Blade Runner or 1492: The Conquest of Paradise. However, the musician also stood out as a pioneer of the electronic genre since, for example, it was he who popularized the synthesizer in film compositions. Thus, there are many who have praised the work of Vangelis, among which Dalí or the astronomer Carl Sagan stand out.
The album 666, which the composer created while he was part of the progressive rock and psychedelic pop band Aphrodite's Child, was one of the most influential of the moment. 666 is a milestone in conceptual music, and was especially praised by the surrealist painter Salvador Dalí.
Another of his loyal fans is Carl Sagan. In the series Cosmos: A Personal Journey, created by the astronomer and scientific popularizer, the music of the Greek composer was included, which led to his popularization worldwide. In fact, another of the curiosities of his career is that his songs have even crossed land borders, since his music has sounded even in space. In 2001, NASA asked him for a theme for the Mars Odyssey unmanned mission.
In the cinematographic field, they have declared themselves admirers of Vangelis Oliver Stone, for whom the Greek devised the soundtrack for the film Alexander the Great, or Ridley Scott, with whom he worked to create the music for Blade Runner.
Among his followers is also the writer Arthur C. Clarke, author of 2001, who thanked Vangelis for his inspiration for the novel 2010: Odyssey Two. Also, soccer fans may know him as the author of the theme song for the 2002 Korea/Japan Soccer World Cup.
In addition, throughout his career the Greek composer has also collaborated with Montserrat Caballé, Luz Casal, Vanessa Mae, Caroline Lavelle, Demis Roussos or Melina Mercouri, to name just a few.
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