After having taken piano lessons, Vangelis began his professional musical career working with several popular bands of the 1960s such as the Forminx and Aphrodite's Child, with the latter's album 666 going on to be recognized as a psychedelic classic. Throughout the 1970s, Vangelis composed music scores for several animal documentaries, including L'Apocalypse des Animaux, La Fête sauvage and Opéra sauvage; the success of these scores brought him into the film scoring mainstream. In the early 1980s, Vangelis formed a musical partnership with Jon Anderson, the lead singer of progressive rock band Yes, and the duo went on to release several albums together as Jon & Vangelis.
In 1981, he composed the score for the Oscar-winning film Chariots of Fire, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Original Score. The soundtrack's single, the film's "Titles" theme, also reached the top of the American Billboard Hot 100 chart and was used as the background music at the London 2012 Olympics winners' medal presentation ceremonies. Vangelis also received acclaim for his synthesizer-based soundtrack for the 1982 film Blade Runner.
Having had a career in music spanning over 70 years and having composed and performed more than 50 albums, Vangelis is considered to be one of the most important figures in the history of electronic music.
Vangelis was born 29 March 1943, in Agria, near Volos, Greece. Largely a self-taught musician, he reportedly began composing at the age of three. His earliest memory is "playing piano, some percussion and whatever else that was available that made a noise. Right from the start, I was only interested in playing my own music". He refused to take traditional piano lessons, and throughout his career did not have substantial knowledge of reading or writing musical notation. When he was six, Vangelis's parents enrolled him at a specialist music school in Athens. He recalls "I was lucky not to go because music schools close doors rather than open them". He studied painting, an art he still practices, at the Athens School of Fine Arts.
In 1989 received Max Steiner Award. France made Vangelis a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters in 1992 and promoted to Commander in 2017, as well Chevalier de la Legion d’ Honneur in 2001. In 1993 received music award Apollo by Friends of the Athens National Opera Society. In 1995, Vangelis had a minor planet named after him (6354 Vangelis) by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center (MPC) at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory; the name was proposed by the MPC's co-director, Gareth V. Williams, rather than by the object's original discoverer, Eugène Joseph Delporte, who died in 1955, long before the 1934 discovery could be confirmed by observations made in 1990. In 1996 and 1997 was awarded at World Music Awards.
NASA conferred their Public Service Medal to Vangelis in 2003. The award is the highest honour the space agency presents to an individual not involved with the American government. Five years later, in 2008, the board of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens voted to make Vangelis an Honorary Doctor, making him Professor Emeritus at their Faculty of Primary Education. In June 2008, the American Hellenic Institute honoured Vangelis with an AHI Hellenic Heritage Achievement Award for his "exceptional artistic achievements" as a pioneer in electronic music and for his lifelong dedication to the promotion of Hellenism through the arts. On 16 September 2013, he received the honour of appearing on the Greek 80 cent postage stamp, as part of a series of six distinguished living personalities of the Greek Diaspora.
Main Theme
Vangelis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I tell you, I tell you, the dragonborn comes
With a voice wielding power of the ancient nord art
Believe, believe, the dragonborn comes
It's an end to the evil, of all Skyrim′s foes
Beware, beware, the dragonborn comes
For the darkness has passed, and the legend yet grows
You'll know, you'll know the dragonborn′s come
Dovahkiin, dovahkiin, naal ok zin los vahriin
Wah dein vokul mahfaeraak ahst vaal!
Ahrk fin norok paal graan fod nust hon zindro zaan
Dovahkiin, fah hin kogaan mu draal!
It is important to note that these lyrics are not from Vangelis's "Main Theme From Missing," but rather from the Skyrim video game soundtrack. With that said, the lyrics speak of a legendary hero known as the Dragonborn who possesses the soul of a dragon and the ability to harness the ancient Nord art of the voice, which allows the Dragonborn to shout with great power. The chorus of the song declares the Dragonborn comes to vanquish evil in all its many forms, and as a true hero, the Dragonborn's legend only grows with each heroic deed.
The first two lines of the song repeat themselves in the chorus, and they refer to the Dragonborn. The chorus speaks of the Dragonborn's powers, claiming that they wield a voice imbued with the ancient art of the Nords, and that they are the end of all the evil in the land of Skyrim. The third line of the chorus calls upon listeners to believe in the power and authority of the Dragonborn, with the final line declaring that the Dragonborn has indeed come.
The verses of the song are in the native tongue of the Nords, which are the people of Skyrim, and as such are a fantasy language of sorts. The verses reaffirm the chorus, further expressing the strength and abilities of the Dragonborn, and calling out to them to use their powers to defeat their enemies. The overall message of the song is one of heroism and adventure, depicting a figure of limitless potential who fights against the forces of darkness to save the people of Skyrim.
Line by Line Meaning
Our hero, our hero, claims a warrior's heart
The singer is eulogized as a courageous character with a heart of a fighter
I tell you, I tell you, the dragonborn comes
The singer anticipates the arrival of the singer, the dragonborn, with excitement
With a voice wielding power of the ancient nord art
The dragonborn possesses an extraordinary and mighty vocal prowess that can be compared to the ancient nordic vocal technique
Believe, believe, the dragonborn comes
The artist conveys the importance of acknowledging and trusting in the powers of the dragonborn
It's an end to the evil, of all Skyrim's foes
The arrival of the dragonborn marks a conclusion to all the villains of Skyrim
Beware, beware, the dragonborn comes
The singer warns the foes of the dragonborn to be cautious and fearful of their imminent demise
For the darkness has passed, and the legend yet grows
The dragonborn has triumphed over the darkness, and the legend continues to be told and remembered
You'll know, you'll know the dragonborn's come
The arrival of the dragonborn won't go unnoticed, as their power and impact will be known and felt by all
Dovahkiin, dovahkiin, naal ok zin los vahriin
The artist addresses the dragonborn through their title, Dovahkiin
Wah dein vokul mahfaeraak ahst vaal!
The artist proclaims a battle cry, calling the dragonborn to use their powers and defeat their enemies
Ahrk fin norok paal graan fod nust hon zindro zaan
The singer tells the dragonborn to use their wits and intellect, as well as their strength, to overcome their foes
Dovahkiin, fah hin kogaan mu draal!
The artist encourages the dragonborn to fulfill their destiny by using all their skills and abilities to conquer their enemies
Writer(s): Evangelos Papathanassiou
Contributed by Hailey F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.