Vangelis has died
Imo, Vangelis brought the synthesizer from an experimental novelty to an instrument for composition. The two sounds I associate with him are the long  brassy triangle with a steep envelope that we know from both Blade Runner and the accompaniment to the piano in the Chariots of Fire theme, and his effective use of chimes.I have tickets for Olafur Arnalds next week, and there is a younger generation of composers like Arnalds, Frahm, Richter, Tiersen, Aphex/James, and even Reznor/Ross, who could not have avoided Vangelis' influence marrying the synth with classical techniques. He was a big part of what inspired me to start making synth music and more than a few of my tracks have homages to his work, and this note triggered a memory of playing the Chariots theme on piano as a really young child and it seemed to be everywhere at the time. A loss, but hard to mourn such an exceptional contribution as well.