L'Apocalypse des animaux (album)
| L'Apocalypse des animaux | ||||
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| Soundtrack album by Vangelis | ||||
| Released | 1973 | |||
| Recorded | Studio Europa Sonor Paris, 1970 |
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| Genre |
Electronic Film score Ambient music |
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| Length | 35:00 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Producer | Vangelis | |||
| Vangelis soundtracks chronology | ||||
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| Allmusic |   |
L'Apocalypse des animaux is a soundtrack album by Greek composer Vangelis. The album's music accompanied a documentary series about the animal kingdom directed by Frédéric Rossif that was first broadcast on French TV in 1970.
All tracks composed and arranged by Vangelis.
This album is one of Vangelis' earliest works, recorded whilst still a member of progressive rock band Aphrodite's Child. It also marks the first time that he collaborated with French director Frédéric Rossif on soundtracks relating to his TV documentary programmes.
Though the album itself was released in 1973, the music was recorded in 1970. In opposition to the way he later recorded soundtrack music – watching the filmed material, then composing to it – in this instance he simply recorded a suite of generic tunes (based on the wildlife theme of the project, but not having access to it) and left it to the film editors to splice-in whatever they needed.
The documentary contains much more music than is available on the album, a common theme with Vangelis soundtracks.
The music belongs to a period in which Vangelis was very prolific and willing to experiment with technology and styles. Not only was he still part of a band and collaborating with a variety of artists, but he had also created a soundtrack to the film by Henry Chapier and participated in recording sessions with some of the most talented jazz and rock musicians in London at the time, the results of which were later released without Vangelis's authorization as the albums Hypothesis and The Dragon.
Musically, the album is extremely melodic, with a minimum of rhythm-based compositions. The long, flowing lines of the major pieces are a precursor of ambient, and feature a style that became known as "cosmic", a variant of drone music. Most of the Krautrock artists also dabbled in this musical style.
The series consisted of six episodes, each lasting 50 minutes:
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Wikipedia