# VANGELIS: How does he do that?!!!!



## Christian64

AMAZING!!


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## Anders Wall

If you search for the BBC series Sound of Cinema The Music that Made the Movies.
And look for Part 3 New Frontiers, you'll find more from his studio.

The whole series is great but this, the last episode, is brilliant.
Thanks for sharing that clip.

/Anders


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## Andrajas

Legendary clip, don’t care if the samples are not the best. Love the composition so much !


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## Zero&One

@Anders Wall its a great series isn’t it.
That’s the one where he starts playing Chariots of Fire when they are just sitting there isn’t it?


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## gsilbers

reminds of DVZ


https://audioimpressions.com


i think they are doing something different now but the guy showing it even looked like the OPs video.


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## Christian64

Anders Wall said:


> If you search for the BBC series Sound of Cinema The Music that Made the Movies.
> And look for Part 3 New Frontiers, you'll find more from his studio.
> 
> The whole series is great but this, the last episode, is brilliant.
> Thanks for sharing that clip.
> 
> /Anders



look at 24.50. Thanks for the info!


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## Anders Wall

Zero&One said:


> @Anders Wall its a great series isn’t it.
> That’s the one where he starts playing Chariots of Fire when they are just sitting there isn’t it?


One of the best series about film music.
My absolute favourite moment is the one with Angelo Badalamenti, it's near the end of the second episode. You can see that he as done this a million times but stilll, the storytelling is as good as it gets.
As is his music. Goosebumps every time :O
Music doesn't have to be complicated to invoke emotions.

Best,
Anders


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## rudi

Picks jaw up from floor :emoji_astonished:
Not only brilliant playing and inventiveness, but such an emotional arc and impact!
As @Anders Wall wrote: "goosebumps".
Thank you for posting @Christian64


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## Wes Antczak

Synthy strings


poetd said:


> Strings sounded a little synthy, terrible legatos too.
> 
> 
> But seriously, HOLY HELL!




Synthy strings and terrible legatos perhaps, yet _he's_ the one with the Oscar. 

As you said, HOLY HELL!


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## Ashermusic

Vangelis _always_ understood something a lot of people here do not. It less important how real it sounds than how musical.


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## IFM

Ashermusic said:


> Vangelis _always_ understood something a lot of people here do not. It less important how real it sounds than how musical.


^ This


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## Gerbil

I really like some of his stuff, especially 'China', but I'm going to be honest, I think it sounds awful and it's not very interesting as an improv.


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## MoeWalsaad

All Vangelis music is unique, doesn't matter if the sounds are synthy or real. his style and performance are wonderful indeed, the final products are complete satisfying packages.


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## Christian64

Anothers improvisations and interviews from 1992...
Classical-electro- VHS vintage!!


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## TomislavEP

Actually, it's quite simple to describe Vangelis and his music. He is a true natural-born talent, completely unspoiled by formal education or by music and film industries. Also, one of the rare examples of using music technology in the right way, with the aim of personal expression and inseparable bond between performance and composition.

Personally, I find it charming that Vangelis always stayed loyal to his methods, even when it comes to choosing the sound palette.


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## CT

I love the footage of him and Ridley Scott at his rooftop studio in Paris. That place is so cool.


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## MauroPantin

I have to admit I had the stupidest grin on my face watching that. Imagine Vangelis having access to something like divisimate...


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## Christian64

TomislavEP said:


> Actually, it's quite simple to describe Vangelis and his music. He is a true natural-born talent, completely unspoiled by formal education or by music and film industries. Also, one of the rare examples of using music technology in the right way, with the aim of personal expression and inseparable bond between performance and composition.
> 
> Personally, I find it charming that Vangelis always stayed loyal to his methods, even when it comes to choosing the sound palette.



Totally agree; vangelis reminds us of the importance of its own musical identity, of improvisation; a kind of musical meditation


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## Ashermusic

Genius exists.


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## AndreBoulard

Music is suppose to be fun just like this. In my opinion this speaks for itself and it's creativity and life. Everything about it is perfect. He loves music and that's what should be the right example of what music means to us


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## Ashermusic

AndreBoulard said:


> Music is suppose to be fun just like this. In my opinion this speaks for itself and it's creativity and life. Everything about it is perfect. He loves music and that's what should be the right example of what music means to us



A huge plus one from me.


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## bcarwell

Is all of this via hardware sound modules or some software libraries ? If the latter, does anybody recognize any ? And what the h-- is that weirdo keyboard controller he is using. I've never seen
one with that weird little triangular rotating patch indicator that apparently you can write on. And any clue what all those pedals are doing- expression, vibrato, ... what ? Really amazing and awe inspiring !


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## Loïc D

Actually, by not focusing on screens and settings and loads of buttons, he has had his ideal vision of a musical GUI built, so that he can focus only on music.
Which is incredibly smart if you can afford it.


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## Zero&One

bcarwell said:


> Is all of this via hardware sound modules or some software libraries ? If the latter, does anybody recognize any ?



Grabbed from another source, who spoke with the builder of the system:

The transposer units are called MTM-8

So in a nutshell, the system in its full configuration is able to control 16 synths: 16 x remotes, 2 x MTM8, 1 x PTV16 (the mixer), 1 x setup recall unit managing 24 songs x 12 setups, allowing to play a full album in one go.

"The dialog between every box is using a faster communication than MIDI, all of this is like a single machine, but using a lot of MCUs bringing globally an incredible CPU capability for this time." 





All the pedals are connected to the PTV mixer (taller box in the photo, at the right with sustain pedal on top of it). The pedals were also modified.


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## JEPA

could his system please go to a museum where we will be allowed to visit? please, please!


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## TomislavEP

bcarwell said:


> Is all of this via hardware sound modules or some software libraries ?



I kind of doubt that Vangelis would use software libraries in his work. Unlike the other composers who started in his era, like Mike Oldfield and Jean Michel Jarre, Vangelis never really embraced using the computers over the acoustic and electric instruments, as well as hardware synthesizers and other studio equipment.

While listening to his later works - "Rosetta" and "Nocturne" in particular - the orchestral sounds remind me very much on those from Roland - starting from the JV series, but also present in their more recent products like the Fantom X and G.



> I've never seen one with that weird little triangular rotating patch indicator that apparently you can write on. And any clue what all those pedals are doing- expression, vibrato, ... what ? Really amazing and awe inspiring !



Actually, these markings are an homage to Vangelis system conceived back in his Nemo Studios days. He developed a series of symbols, each one representing a certain type of sound or setting. For example, heart meant "choir" (from "coeur").

With the pedals, he is able to bring certain sonic elements in and out as he is performing or composing. In a nutshell, this whole system is a compact version of the fully equipped studio that Vangelis preferred to use over the years.


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## LudovicVDP

Love Vangelis. Always have.
I've seen that video probably 100 times. Never gets old.

Thanks a lot for that link "Sound of Cinema...". That's excellent !


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## RobbertZH

He has also made music with Jon Anderson, the singer of the symphonic rock band Yes.
I like their first two CD's: "Short Stories" and "The Friends of Mr Cairo".

This example, "The Mayflower" from "The Friends of Mr Cairo", is really atmospheric and has a wonderful buildup from calm to epic:




Also really nice is "Beside" from the same CD:


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## korgscrew2000

poetd said:


> Strings sounded a little synthy, terrible legatos too.
> 
> 
> But seriously, HOLY HELL!


I don't know. Maybe because it's a synth?


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## RobbertZH

poetd said:


> Strings sounded a little synthy




In the past (80's) you had synth keyboards totally dedicated to string-like sounds.
Sometimes they had an ensemble effect to make the sound more alive
and to widen the sound in the stereo field.
However, they definitely do not even come close to realistic (acoustic) strings.

Maybe it is me being nostalgic, but just like the Mellotron, string synths have a distinctive sound that I still like today and sometimes use in my of my music.

Recently I bought Virtual String Machine from GForce and I used one of its patches as a string pad here:


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## Wes Antczak

TomislavEP said:


> I kind of doubt that Vangelis would use software libraries in his work. Unlike the other composers who started in his era, like Mike Oldfield and Jean Michel Jarre, Vangelis never really embraced using the computers over the acoustic and electric instruments, as well as hardware synthesizers and other studio equipment.
> 
> While listening to his later works - "Rosetta" and "Nocturne" in particular - the orchestral sounds remind me very much on those from Roland - starting from the JV series, but also present in their more recent products like the Fantom X and G.
> 
> 
> 
> Actually, these markings are an homage to Vangelis system conceived back in his Nemo Studios days. He developed a series of symbols, each one representing a certain type of sound or setting. For example, heart meant "choir" (from "coeur").
> 
> With the pedals, he is able to bring certain sonic elements in and out as he is performing or composing. In a nutshell, this whole system is a compact version of the fully equipped studio that Vangelis preferred to use over the years.



I remember seeing a photo of one of his racks that contained a JV1080. The photo was roughly from around the time of Mythodea.


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## Pincel

RobbertZH said:


> In the past (80's) you had synth keyboards totally dedicated to string-like sounds.
> Sometimes they had an ensemble effect to make the sound more alive
> and to widen the sound in the stereo field.
> However, they definitely do not even come close to realistic (acoustic) strings.
> 
> Maybe it is me being nostalgic, but just like the Mellotron, string synths have a distinctive sound that I still like today and sometimes use in my of my music.
> 
> Recently I bought Virtual String Machine from GForce and I used one of its patches as a string pad here:




That's such a lovely track! Tasty sounds... I totally agree, there's just something about the sound of those classic string synths that really speaks to me, and I grew up in the 90's, so certainly not an age thing. They just feel so warm and nostalgic, like you said.


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## TomislavEP

RobbertZH said:


> In the past (80's) you had synth keyboards totally dedicated to string-like sounds.
> Sometimes they had an ensemble effect to make the sound more alive
> and to widen the sound in the stereo field.
> However, they definitely do not even come close to realistic (acoustic) strings.



It's not about the sound source but about the person using the sounds to convey their emotions. Vangelis will always be able to do that no matter what kind of sounds he is using.

One of the far too many reasons why he is my strongest influence, is Vangelis' usage of technology with the primary goal of personal expression. As a completely self-taught artist and also one of the pioneers of composing through performance, Vangelis needed a way to bridge the gap between himself and the "orchestral" sound. For him, synthesizers are the bridge. You don't necessarily need to achieve the perfect realism when "emulating" orchestral music, even today when such a thing is theoretically possible; the main thing is a possibility of such expression for us who are not classically trained or prefer to work in Vangelis' style rather than doing it in a traditional way.


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## RobbertZH

TomislavEP said:


> It's not about the sound source but about the person using the sounds to convey their emotions. Vangelis will always be able to do that no matter what kind of sounds he is using.
> ...
> You don't necessarily need to achieve the perfect realism when "emulating" orchestral music
> ...



I agree. I know a few bands in the 70's and 80s that used synths to create a cinematic or orchestral feel and succeeded fully. 

Vangelis is one of those. I find the song "The Mayflower" (see my previous post) a perfect example of sounding cinematic even when using synths.

Another (symphonic rock) band which sounded really orchestral, even when using synths for strings and brass, is "the Enid". Their LP/CD "In the Region of the Summer Stars" is a good example. You can find it on youtube.


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## telecode101

..


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## BVMusic

There is a very interesting site about his studio from where he composed Blade Runner. It also explains, how he used his synths and his workflow http://www.nemostudios.co.uk/bladerunner/. I have too tried to approach this way of composing, and the beauty of it is that your spontaneity comes out in realtime!

COLUMBUS - Brian Vassallo


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## Mithnaur

Anders Wall said:


> If you search for the BBC series Sound of Cinema The Music that Made the Movies.
> And look for Part 3 New Frontiers, you'll find more from his studio.
> 
> The whole series is great but this, the last episode, is brilliant.
> Thanks for sharing that clip.
> 
> /Anders


I'd be really curious to look at this but where can we still find it?
On youtube I couldn't find it anyway. Or I think a short clip!

Anyway, concerning the video of the topic, I had just stumbled upon it some time ago and I was absolutely amazed by the method of composition and recording of Vangelis.

A real one-man band with an inspiration and sonorities without equivalent.
And to have found the way to compose everything at the same time without the help of digital technologies (except the recording I guess) is just great.

I'm fascinated by his strange boxes / mixers that allow him to assign to his keyboard and pedals all the sounds he has in his studio from analog synths. I even see that he has an M3 like me ^^. Which I don't use at all anymore, I have to replace the touch screen panel.

And so all his compo is live in a way! Like Tangerine Dream's live recordings, but with just a keyboard 

In short, it's unique, fascinating and inspiring. A great man.

And I'm still a big fan of the Blade Runner soundtrack among others. And the Rosetta album is excellent!


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## Anders Wall

Mithnaur said:


> I'd be really curious to look at this but where can we still find it?
> On youtube I couldn't find it anyway. Or I think a short clip!
> 
> Anyway, concerning the video of the topic, I had just stumbled upon it some time ago and I was absolutely amazed by the method of composition and recording of Vangelis.
> 
> A real one-man band with an inspiration and sonorities without equivalent.
> And to have found the way to compose everything at the same time without the help of digital technologies (except the recording I guess) is just great.
> 
> I'm fascinated by his strange boxes / mixers that allow him to assign to his keyboard and pedals all the sounds he has in his studio from analog synths. I even see that he has an M3 like me ^^. Which I don't use at all anymore, I have to replace the touch screen panel.
> 
> And so all his compo is live in a way! Like Tangerine Dream's live recordings, but with just a keyboard
> 
> In short, it's unique, fascinating and inspiring. A great man.
> 
> And I'm still a big fan of the Blade Runner soundtrack among others. And the Rosetta album is excellent!


Here’s a short snippet.








BBC Four - Sound of Cinema: The Music That Made the Movies, New Frontiers, Composing for Chariots of Fire


Vangelis describes the evolution of the Chariots of Fire theme.




www.bbc.co.uk





The whole series is on YouTube.
BBC Sound of Cinema: The Music that Made the Movies​
Best of luck,
/Anders


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## Mithnaur

Anders Wall said:


> Here’s a short snippet.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> BBC Four - Sound of Cinema: The Music That Made the Movies, New Frontiers, Composing for Chariots of Fire
> 
> 
> Vangelis describes the evolution of the Chariots of Fire theme.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> www.bbc.co.uk
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> The whole series is on YouTube.
> BBC Sound of Cinema: The Music that Made the Movies​
> Best of luck,
> /Anders


Thank you! Indeed I had seen the short extract on the BBC website.
On the other hand on YT, I must be stupid but I did not find for the whole series. Do you have a link?
The only thing I found was this


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## Anders Wall

Mithnaur said:


> Thank you! Indeed I had seen the short extract on the BBC website.
> On the other hand on YT, I must be stupid but I did not find for the whole series. Do you have a link?
> The only thing I found was this





Here’s the full episode.



Best,
/Anders


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## EvilDragon

There's a Korg M3 right there in that video, I bet lots of sounds from that piece are coming right from it. Strings and piano certainly sound more Korg-like than Roland-like.


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## BVMusic

Anders Wall said:


> Here’s the full episode.
> 
> 
> 
> Best,
> /Anders



Beautiful, a must-watch for all musicians and sound designers. Thanks for sharing @Anders Wall 
Inspired!


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