album · September 17, 2001
Mythodea: Music for the NASA Mission: 2001 Mars Odyssey
Sony ClassicalSee this day
electronicambient
This album documents a live performance of new Vangelis compositions commissioned by NASA for their 2001 Mars Odyssey mission. It blends his signature electronic soundscapes with orchestral and choral arrangements.
- The work was first performed live on June 28, 2001, at the Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens, Greece, accompanied by a full orchestra and choir. The NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin commissioned the piece to accompany the Odyssey's landing on Mars, which took place in October 2001. The album reached number 2 on Billboard's Top New Age Albums chart in 2002.
- The live performance was broadcast internationally by NASA TV.
- This release marked Vangelis's first album on the Sony Classical label.
Vangelis Papathanassiou was a Greek composer of electronic, ambient, and classical music, best known for his pioneering use of synthesizers and his Oscar-winning score for Chariots of Fire. At the time of Mythodea's release, he was already a globally recognized figure in electronic music, having delivered high-profile soundtracks for film and television.
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