The “biggest obstacle” that Vangelis faced
The Greek composer Vangelis was one of the most acclaimed arrangers of electronic, ambient, progressive and modern classic music, known for his amazing film scores, including Chariots of Fire, Blade Runner and The Bounty. Vangelis’ approach to writing music proves his genius, and his notoriety in the music industry is undoubted.
Still, there’s the sense in Vangelis that he had to ultimately play into the hands of record companies in order to get money so he could fill his studios with the kinds of equipment that would allow him to create his glorious symphonies.
“I play the game, and fortunately, or unfortunately, I had the facility to write things that we call hits,” the musician once said. “And these hits maybe gave me the opportunity to get the technology and the materials and the studios I need to build all those things.”
However, Vangelis also noted that because there was a requirement to write hits, then it also became something of an “obstacle” that he had to overcome merely to appease labels and allow him to do the work he genuinely wanted to, rather than simply serve them instead.
“But on the other hand, it’s been my biggest obstacle because I couldn’t do the things I wanted to do since my childhood,” he said. “I have never been a good pop star, the type that tried to sell to the record companies. That has always been my biggest problem.”
“I was always promoted in a different way from the one I am,” he added. “It’s because I had to do it. Through the electronic fields, I couldn’t buy all the synthesisers and, you know, equip my studio with the latest technology until now, which is a big thing. So I had to find the funding in order to create those kinds of things.”
So there’s a feeling in Vangelis that he knew he had big aspirations but couldn’t necessarily move towards them without “playing the game” a little to generate an income big enough to purchase the equipment he needed, which was vast and expensive.
The composer also went on to explain that when someone has success in the music industry, they are expected to repeat themselves, which he was desperate not to do. So even though Vangelis has the acclaim he does, it was not always an easy process for him to realise his creative vision.
