Philip Glass

Philip Glass
© Jack Mitchell

Philip Glass

Philip Glass is a contemporary (b. 1937) American minimalist (he rejects this term) composer. He authored operas, theatre works, ten symphonies, concertos, chamber music (string quartets) and film scores, such as the magnificent A Brief History of Time for Errol Morris's documentary (more on that here). To me, this is the music of the Physical Universe and, which is the same thing, of Mysterium Tremendum. You can play it here to set yourself in the mood:

I still remember this intimate embrace of the unknown with a promise of revelations, of enlightenment supplanting knowledge, of understanding blossoming in wisdom, of inner, intemporal, everlasting peace at last, that I felt when first hearing this music. I knew I would spend the rest of my life trying to touch with my brain what my soul had fleetingly grasped.

Some renditions of Glass' work, like this passage [1] from his String Quartet No. 5 by the Kronos Quartet (for which this was written), seem to open a door to another dimension.

Œuvres

• Les Enfants Terribles, for which he composed a three-pianos opera.
• Einstein on the Beach, a four-acts opera breaking rules just as Einstein's theories did.
• Mad Rush, one of my favourite classical compositions.
• Modern Love Waltz, an entrancing composition.
• A Brief History of Time's soundtrack.
• Itaipu, a cantata in Guarani.
• Aguas de Amazonia, for which I created the Wikipedia page.
• Koyaanisqatsi, a tribute to civilizations gone and those who took their place.
• Mishima, as his String Quartet No. 3 (see below).
• Solo Piano Music, for instance played by Jeroen van Veen.

String Quartets

Glass came fairly late to the string quartets but some of his major works (Nos. 3 and 5) are in this peculiar style:

• No. 1 in 1966, untitled.
  • Lesser known. A dissonant precursor to his minimalist style; two movements with gestural repetitions. Anguishing music. He would leave this style in pause for almost two decades. Can be listened here.
• No. 2 "Company" in 1983
  • Four short movements for Samuel Beckett's novella; monochrome, arpeggio-driven, intimate. Can be listened here.
• No. 3 "Mishima" in 1985
  • A masterpiece in five movements for the movie Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters. The best known and most performed, part of the soundtrack capturing Mishima's alienation from the world, in particular his F-104: epilogue from Sun And Steel (not part of the quartet). Can be listened here while the full soundtrack can be listened here.
• No. 4 "Buczak" in 1989
  • Dedicated to Brian Buczak; three larger-scale movements exploring broader harmony and form.
• No. 5 in 1991
  • His second masterpiece in this genre, five movements with dedications, rich in cyclic themes and emotional gravitas. A beautiful rendition is by the Kronos Quartet. A favourite passage is from the String Quartet no. 5: V.
• No. 6 in 2013
  • A three-movement work commissioned by the Kronos Quartet, richer than usual, with surprising moments like a long unison passage in the third movement alternating between 7/8 and 4/4 meters.
• No. 7 in 2014
  • A single-movement piece, premiered by the Kronos Quartet in the dance production "Spiritwalking".
• No. 8 in 2018
  • In a traditional three-movement "fast-slow-fast" format. Described as almost Schubertian in its layered sounds, contrasting timbres and rhythms.
• No. 9 "King Lear" in the period 2019–2022
  • For Shakespeare's King Lear, later adapted into a standalone concert quartet.

Links

• http://www.philipglass.com.
• Philip Glass on Wikipedia.
• How to play piano like Philip Glass.