El Greco

Vangelis (Composer, Performer), Montserrat Caballé (Performer), Konstantinos Paliatsaras (Performer)

Product Details

• Performer: Vangelis, Montserrat Caballé, Konstantinos Paliatsaras
• Composer: Vangelis
• Audio CD (January 19, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Atlantic / Wea
• ASIN: B00000HY5L
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #45,796 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Somber, stately, and reverent, the nine untitled movements (and concluding seven-minute epilogue) presented by keyboardist-composer Vangelis convey the mood of a requiem. These 10 lengthy works form a tribute to the respected native of Crete (1541-1614) whose religiously minded paintings (many created in near isolation in the Spanish city of Toledo) are notable, among other reasons, for their singular cross-pollination of Byzantine, Venetian, and Spanish influences. (The artist's nickname, El Greco, is in fact a linguistic merger of Spanish and Greek.) Musically, the recording dwells in a near-classical atmosphere that only occasionally offers any hints of rhythmic progression or ethereal expansiveness. Instead, the music conveys a more formal, classically rooted seriousness that at times features the operatic embellishments of soprano Montserrat Caballe and tenor Kostantinos Paliatsaras. Perhaps the recording's loveliest moments reside in the fifth movement, where Vangelis adorns the sustained earnestness of his work with some gently evocative piano runs. This, however, is an exception to an otherwise weighty musical endeavor. --Terry Wood

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Painted Dream, February 16, 2001

By	D. Roberts "Hadrian12" (Battle Creek, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is one of Vangelis' most original and complete albums to date. It is a tribute to a Cretan painter named El Greco (his Spainish name) who lived in the 1600s. It is a pleasure to see a musician the calibre of Vangelis employ his craft as a medium to pay homage to a fellow artist. It is obvious that El Greco bequeathed in his work a tremendous amount of inspiration for Vangelis.

The music on this CD is reminiscent of a requiem, for the most part. The tone of the music is surreal; almost as though it is depicting a communion of the two artists in a dreamscape. To me, the tones of this piece, particularly in the first movement, give a wonderful imitation of the atemporal properties of paintings. The brooding timbre invites the listener into an inner sanctum of artistic expression. It is hauntingly morose, but also very elegant.

I would highly recommend this album to admirers of electronic music, as well as people who adore sensual and (perhaps) melancholy mood setters.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A shimmering, challenging pop masterpiece, April 6, 2001

By	Shaw N. Gynan (Bellingham, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Like many of the other reviewers, I have been a Vangelis fan for years. I have all of his CDs (except repetitive compilations). And like many other reviewers, I found this work tough sledding at first. In fact, I listened to it once, felt that the soprano was too dramatic, and then filed the CD away for months. Well, recently I just grabbed it along with a bunch of other disks for a long ride on the highway and I couldn't believe that I had not been captivated before by the opening movement with its low sustained passages for strings and somber tolling bells. Indeed, I was eventually convinced that the soprano solo was beautiful, even moving.

Vangelis has created his own musical language, characterized by a special set of sounds and a grammar to stitch them together. Sometimes his juxtaposition of popular and classical styles is jarring, but here the lighter movements 3 and 5 are a lovely interlude. Devotees will recognize the instruments and themes from past works, all part of the chromatic idiom he has developed.

Vangelis has been down the classical road before. I refer to "Beaubourg" and "Invisible Connections," both of which were, arguably, modern classical compositions. In my humble opinion, "Invisible Connections" (a Deutsche Grammaphon recording) is the purest classical composition Vangelis has produced, one in which he attempts to eschew conventional western tonality and overtly pop style. "Invisible Connections" is uncompromising and successful. Fans of that work will find the haunting echoes from Movement 9 reminiscent of it.

"El Greco" is not at all up to the standard of "Invisible Connections," and indeed Vangelis certainly appears not to have intended to produce a strictly classical work, but it is lovely, and, as is typical for Vangelis disks, beautifully produced. The sound is rich and clear. There is also a nice theme and variations approach to the entire work, by means of which Vangelis develops a few captivating melodies. Wait until you hear the epilogue, one of Vangelis's loveliest songs yet.

So folks, go ahead and buy it and with some patience and at least three listens, you should find it as engrossing and inspirational as many of us have.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars no depression, December 29, 1999

By	daryl vasquez (davis ca) - See all my reviews

I'm not sure what the problem is that the first reviewer has with this stunning excersise in atmosphere Vangelis has created but I'm going to guess that they missed the point of this work. For El Greco, Vangelis stays away from traditional fanfare, predictable movements and even his own over used historonics commonly displayed in works like "Oceanic" and "Voices". Instead the composer creates a distanct mood and feel of the times and subject matter. Vangelis builds a dense tapestry that lulls the listener into the thought process of the painter (El Greco) without forcing himself upon our senses telling us how we should feel. If one wants to enjoy the "cheerful allegros and powerful prestos" of Vivaldi......then listen to Vivaldi.I think one could have easily guessed the "mood" of the album by the black and...well, moody cover. It's always been a baffeling train of thought that some "critics" subscribe to that causes them to say things like "....not what I would expect from the auther of...." when common sense would dicate just the opposite. Vanglis, like all great artits do things that can not be expected.