en Optimystique

Optimystique
Optimystique
	1984 release front cover
Studio album by Yanni
Released	1984
Recorded	1980; Cookhouse Studios and Sound 80 (Minneapolis, Minnesota);
Genre	Instrumental; pop rock;
Length	38:41
Label	Independent (1980); Varèse Sarabande (1984); Private Music (1989)
Producer	Jerry Steckling; Yanni;
Yanni chronology
Alternative cover
	1989 release front cover

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[1]

Optimystique is the debut studio album by Greek keyboardist, composer, and producer Yanni, released in 1980 independently. It was re-released in 1984 by Varèse Sarabande and in 1989 by Private Music.

Liner notes

Optimystique was recorded in 1980 and released for the first time in 1984. I considered re-recording or reworking the material before re-releasing it again, but the album has a very special sound representative of a particular time early in my career which I wanted to preserve. For me, it is a piece of my history I remember fondly.^[2]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Yanni

No.	Title	Length
1.	"The Sphynx"	4:13
2.	"Butterfly Dance"	6:26
3.	"Strings"	3:50
4.	"Twilight"	7:35
5.	"The Chase"	5:08
6.	"Farewell"	2:47
7.	"Turn of the Tide"	3:57
8.	"The Magus"	4:45 "Butterfly Dance" (1980) "Butterfly Dance" Early in his career Yanni focused heavily on the electronic side of music.^[3] Problems playing this file? See media help.

Personnel

All music composed and produced by Yanni
Yanni – Synthesizers and Keyboards
Ernest LaViolette – Drums and Percussion
Tom Sterling – Bass guitar on "Twilight"
Dugan McNeill – Bass guitar on "The Chase"
Tony Matsis – Bouzouki on "Strings"
Bruce Kurno – Harps

Production

Produced by Jerry Steckling and Yanni
Executive Producers: Mark MacPherson and Tom Paske
Engineered by Jerry Steckling
Assistant Engineer: Chopper Black
Recorded at Cookhouse Studios and Sound 80, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Mastered by Chris Bellman at Bernie Grundman Mastering, Los Angeles

References

^ AllMusic
^ Optimystique (CD liner). Yanni. Private Music. 1989.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
^ Burnett, Richard, "From the Acropolis to America, Yanni still sits on top of the world" (WebCite archive), The Gazette (Montreal), June 14, 2012.

External links

[1] AllMusic

[AlbumNotes-2] Optimystique (CD liner). Yanni. Private Music. 1989.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)

[MontrealGazette20120614-3] Burnett, Richard, "From the Acropolis to America, Yanni still sits on top of the world" (WebCite archive), The Gazette (Montreal), June 14, 2012.

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