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CD reviews

El Greco

Vangelis - El Greco Audio CD

A fair review of the Vangelis "El Greco" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Vangelis reviews here, or go back to the Vangelis tabs.

Band: Vangelis
Title: El Greco
Rating:

Release Date: 1999-01-19
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Greco/1st Movement 2: Greco/2nd Movement 3: Greco/3rd Movement 4: Greco/4th Movement 5: Greco/5th Movement 6: Greco/6th Movement 7: Greco/7th Movement 8: Greco/8th Movement 9: Greco/9th Movement 10: Greco/10th Movement - Epilogue

Intensely dark and moody
If it's dark and rainy and you want a soundtrack for melancholia, this is certainly it. This album opens on a dark and sombre note and occasionally lifts above it (especially the lovely final track).

I'm a big fan of Vangelis and while this isn't among my favorite works by him it is undeniably brilliant at moments. The overwhelming darkness actually reminds me more of Goya than El Greco, but in any case the implacable vibe strikes deep and leaves its mark. This would be frightening to listen to at real volume alone in a storm! I've just heard it twice in a row on a windy spring evening on excellent headphones, and I have definitely been transported to a more Byzantine universe, shaded in browns and blacks. The production is tremendous; it's hard not to get swept up in the whirlpools of minor tonality and haunting harmony.

Not highly recommended for those who forgot to renew their antidepressants.

A Modern Tone Poem set in the time of El Greco
However, Vangelis has dabbed into the classical music realm throughout his musical career, especially early on with Invisible Connections, and it seems to me that some fans are too used to Vangelis' way of composing, his singular style that a lot of his songs have. Most people who are familiar with Vangelis know him through film soundtracks such as Chariots of Fire and Bladerunner or through his 70s-80s albums. We must keep in mind that Vangelis is an artist, beholden to no one and especially to fans who constrain his artistic vision. This is why his music is timelessly good, and why he can compose something like Mythodea and El Greco. (Besides, if you don't like a masterpiece like El Greco because it didn't meet your usual conceptions about Vangelis, even though you see this cover meant moody music, then either broaden your horizons or don't review it at all)

El Greco can be compared to the tone poems of the Romantic Era, but the music hearkens back to the time of the painter El Greco, the exile whose unique paintings made huge impressions on such artists like Picasso and other Cubists. Vangelis aims to bring us to that world of darker, more primitive surroundings when music itself was beginning to develop into the Baroque. From the moment he weaves this glistening web of sound, an atmosphere that is mysterious as is engrossing, and Vangelis takes you on an emotional journey, more subtle and introverted than that of Chariots of Fire or Conquest of Paradise. This masterpiece deserves one's full attention, like all good pieces of music whether classical or something else, because the intricacies that are brought to the listener are not appreciated if you multitask. The music of Vangelis surely has more worth than that of background music.

In brief, I will not recommend this to everyone, since inevitably there will be people who cannot undertake this emotional passage through time, but for true fans of Vangelis or of good, atmospheric music in general, get this now! .

One of my Favorites.

This is a completely original composition and represents a new direction for Vangelis than his previous CDs which were beginning to get a bit too routine and conventionally new age. I'm not particularly knowledgeable when it comes to El Greco's artwork however I'm grateful that his paintings inspired Vangelis to compose this incredible CD. There are tracks here that range through a spectrum of moods; to the playful to the mysterious and to the dark and hypnotic. Many of the tracks are long but one never gets the feeling that Vangelis was simply meandering or being over-indulgent.

Movement I is very dark in its tone while movement III is lighthearted. Movements V and X are my favorites and absolutely beautiful to listen to while movements VIII and IX invoke more serious themes that a listener can lose one's thoughts in.

This is one of Vangelis's best CDs and ranks among my favorites along with "Blade Runner" and "1492. ".

Divine for the most part [4.5 stars]
Vangelis has done an amazing job in this album creating music that is dark, haunting, melancholic and beautiful at the same time, and there are some happier moments too. If you want to go back in time to the medieval period, this is the perfect album. Make no mistake, this is more of classical music than new age. The album opens with 'Movement I' which is very dark and mysterious, but also extremely melodious. It keeps building in that tone until it reaches 'Movement V', which is poignant and bitter-sweet and provides some of the lighter moments in the album. The closing track 'Movement X (Epilogue)' is another gem. While the entire album is a great work in itself, these three songs really stand out. If you are a fan of Vangelis or of the classical/neo-classical genre, don't miss out on this album.

Stunning and Somber: Listen While Viewing El Greco's Art
HOWEVER, instead of just listening to 'El Greco' and judging it strictly on what it conveys musically, I would encourage listeners to view the works of El Greco while listening to Vangelis' tribute to this 16th-century artist. Certainly one of Vangelis' moodiest works since `Mask', 'El Greco' nevertheless has a few light moments in movements III and V.

I was initially not overly impressed with Vangelis' 'El Greco. ' However, on a recent trip to Spain, my traveling partner and I were fortunate to be among the first few tourists to enter the little Church of Santo Tom� in Toledo, the location of El Greco's masterful mural, the 'Burial of the Count of Orgaz'. I had put Vangelis' 'El Greco' on my iPod, and for 30 minutes on that wonderful morning we stood there, nearly alone with the painting, and listened to movement III over and over again as we stared in awe at the ethereal beauty of El Greco's subjects (I was particularly struck by his depiction of St Augustine). It was a sublime experience; how often does great art get its own soundtrack?

Listening to Vangelis' 'El Greco' in the presence of one of the painter's finest pieces, I was completely overwhelmed at how Vangelis was able to convey the spirit of the artist's work in music. (I was, I think, in the presence of two masters. ) 'El Greco' has since become one of my favorite of Vangelis' compositions.

You can see a complete list of all Vangelis discography, or go back to the Vangelis tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.