1492: Conquest of Paradise is a 1992 album by the Greek artist Vangelis. It was originally the soundtrack for the film 1492: Conquest of Paradise, directed by Ridley Scott. Vangelis had previously composed the score for Scott's Blade Runner in 1982.

Tracks

1. Opening (1:20)
2. Conquest of Paradise (4:47)
3. Monastery of La Rabida (3:37)
4. City of Isabel (2:16)
5. Light and Shadow (3:46)
6. Deliverance (3:28)
7. West Across the Ocean Sea (2:52)
8. Eternity (1:59)
9. Hispañola (4:56)
10. Moxica and the Horse (7:06)
11. Twenty Eighth Parallel (5:14)
12. Niña, Pinta, Santa Maria (into Eternity) (13:20)

Instrumentation

On this soundtrack, Vangelis plays together with a number of performers, including two Flamenco guitarists and vocalists, violin, mandolin and flutes. As on a number of previous albums by Vangelis, the English Chamber Choir, directed by Guy Protheroe, performs the choral parts.

Vangelis plays all synthesizers, using mainly string patches but also several ethnic ones, to reflect the character of the film, and electric piano and harp patches. Some calmer, athmospheric pieces (tracks 3, 7, 11 and 12) are entirely performed by Vangelis, using pianos, strings and harp.

For the ethnic music, Vangelis consulted with the French ethnic music specialist Xavier Belanger, who had previously advised Jean-Michel Jarre on similar issues.

Use in the film

A number of pieces can be identified in the film, but it is clear that Scott preferred the haunting "Hispañola" (track 9) to set the tone of the film, rather than the heroic and more upbeat theme "Conquest of Paradise" (track 2). Similarly, track 12 was probably intended by the artist to accompany the end titles.

Revival

In 1992, a single was released from the album, which performed poorly in the charts (blamed by fans on bad marketing).

The album underwent a revival when the German boxer Henry Maske used "Conquest of Paradise" as his personal theme during matches in 1995. When he became the national champion, the piece received wide coverage and a single was hastily released - it was #1 for a number of weeks in several countries. A video clip shows Vangelis in his Paris-based Epsilon Studios, notable for its greenhouse-like glass design (it has since been dismantled), with the choir performing.