Mythodea: Music for the NASA Mission: 2001 Mars Odyssey

An avatar of orchestral synthesis for 30 years, Vangelis has only now made his full orchestral outing with the ambitious and epic Mythodea. Currently linked as theme music for NASA's Mission to Mars program, Mythodea dates back to 1993, when Vangelis premiered the work in a live performance. After the amorphous synthesizer opening, Vangelis is little-heard, using his keyboards only to support the large orchestra, 100-voice mixed choir, massed timpani, and the twin soprano leads of Kathleen Battle and Jessye Norman. Echoes of Gustav Holst, Gustav Mahler, and Carl Orff suffuse Mythodea, with its stentorian choirs, rumbling percussion, and dense string writing. Singing a hybrid language, Norman and Battle spiral through Vangelis's evocation of an ancient Greek landscape. By turns smothering and grandiose, and often turgid, Mythodea is nevertheless studded with memorable themes, notably "Movement 9." It's a poignant, haunting melody, with the sopranos looping back and forth in ascending arcs, recalling Delibes's aria from "Lakmé," better known as the British Airways theme. This is the Vangelis of "L'Enfant," and "Heaven & Hell," where the composer's true voice is heard. --John Diliberto

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