# What do you think of the music of Philip Glass?



## beetzart (Dec 30, 2009)

I found this piece yesterday and the beautiful descending chromatics in the latter part are something special. At least I think so anyway.


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## jdec (Mar 23, 2013)

Not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not not too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too too fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond fond of him of him of him of him of him of him of him of him of him of him of him of him of him of him of him of him sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry sorry ...


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## beetzart (Dec 30, 2009)

Very good, but no need to be sorry!


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## Dorsetmike (Sep 26, 2018)

Don't wish to offend so NO COMMENT.


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

I like him a lot. Especially his symphonies (including two inspired by David Bowie albums), concertos, and song cycles.


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## Enthusiast (Mar 5, 2016)

I think he is a joke but not one in good taste. Early on he was interesting. But he seems to have stood still. I did quite like his 1st violin concerto and Symphony 2 is OK. But the 2nd violin concerto is really horrible, I think. It is a good example of music that I think is deeply ugly.


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## JAS (Mar 6, 2013)

jdec said:


> Not not not not . . .


I am reminded of the famous rejection letter for Gertrude Stein: http://www.openculture.com/2013/06/gertrude_stein_a_snarky_rejection_letter_from_publisher_1912.html


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## Marinera (May 13, 2016)

I really like Orphee suite for piano, still haven't got it, but this thread is a reminder I should get it. 

I like his music a lot. I have a special affinity for his vocal works. Glass' the first two opera trilogies are my particular favourites. I don't find a connection with his symphonies, but what's new. I don't say I don't like them, they are pleasant listening, but I won't go out of my way to get them for myself although attending the concert is different. I am much keener on his concertos, piano works, or even film soundtracks, though nothing beats those first six operas and Orphee is one of them. It is all sung in recitative, and I can imagine this being not for everyone, but it is a completely unique work, very addictive and irreplaceable when you have special craving for it. I found it through listening to Orphee piano suites on you tube and bought it pronto.


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## Ingélou (Feb 10, 2013)

I haven't listened to much, but whenever I've tried out pieces referred to on TC, I've always found that I enjoyed them.

I particularly like his violin concerto:


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

I've heard only one piece. His 2nd piano concerto performed live in 2016. It's a bit premature to judge a work after one listening, but that live performance didn't really do much for me. The piece didn't sound like it was up to the high standards of many other concertos in the repertoire. The music struck me as fairly mundane and lacking interesting ideas.


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## Texas Chain Saw Mazurka (Nov 1, 2009)

Putting him next to the great composers invites some really unflattering comparisons, imho, but I've still enjoyed his music.


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## Fredx2098 (Jun 24, 2018)

I've seen a lot of negativity about his music lately. I've always loved everything I've heard of his. If you don't like minimalism, you're not gonna like Glass. I do like minimalism (I don't really "love" it though) and I think he's a good example, though maybe it's a bit on-the-nose.


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## isorhythm (Jan 2, 2015)

I like a fair amount of his stuff up to _Einstein on the Beach_ and almost nothing after that, for whatever reason. His first violin concerto is OK.


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

Amy Dickson's arrangement for soprano saxophone of Glass's First Violin Concerto... requires the use of circular breathing, certainly a 20th-century approach to the writing of a concerto other than Mendelssohn et alia. It also adds that she looks amazing and is tan, trim, and beautiful in this difficult performance... It's difficult to control the instrument and not 'honk' in the lower register, and she manages quite well in a work that I find highly characteristic of the composer for his use of repetition, rhythm, and patterns that build emotional intensity-lyrical, flowing, energetic... He's followed his own muse and I feel there's value in that and a certain recognizability of style that can be immediately heard. Is that the mark of a great composer? Perhaps the jury is still out on the value of Minimalism and Glass's distinctive sound like in so many other areas of contemporary music. But I like the psychological, innermost, introspective quality of his music and that it's not jarring and fragmented like some of his modern contemporaries with their oftentimes strident point of view. I find his works deceptively simple on the surface but with something dramatic & deeper at the center... Bravo to the talented Ms. Dickson.


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## Haydn70 (Jan 8, 2017)

I dislike (intensely) his music. It is extremely boring/tiresome. I dislike (intensely) the entire 'minimalist' aesthetic is all its manifestations.

His music (and that of the other minimalists) has been called "classical music for people who don't classical music". In other words, the rock/pop crowd. No surprise because of its similarity to rock music: simple harmonic and melodic palette and excessive repetition.

At least, however, his music is not sonically offensive like serial/atonal music.


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

ArsMusica said:


> I dislike (intensely) his music. It is extremely boring/tiresome. I dislike (intensely) the entire 'minimalist' aesthetic is all its manifestations.


Would that minimalists shared one neck so that I could hang them all with a single rope.

(Actually I kinda like some of that stuff, but wanted to say this anyway. )


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## elgar's ghost (Aug 8, 2010)

I liked what I heard to begin with but I got tired of his style and I rarely listen to his work. The only thing of his I wouldn't abandon is the opera _Akhnaten_, a work I find strangely moving. Maybe the problem is mine - all what I've heard is orchestral-based: maybe the sparser textures of chamber or piano might rekindle my interest, but I'm loathe to investigate in case the novelty wears off again.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Larkenfield said:


> Bravo to the stunning Ms Dickson.


Hear, hear. I don't look that good when I circular-breathe.

I haven't been sold on Glass' music as a whole. There are isolated pieces that I connect with. I do like Glassworks, though.


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## Tchaikov6 (Mar 30, 2016)

He is a hit or miss composer for me... I really like his string quartets and symphonies but the operas I really can’t stand, same with the violin concerto 2.


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## Steve Mc (Jun 14, 2018)

For me, it's the Symphonies I can't really get into.
Prefer Adams when it comes to operas. I do like the Cello Concerto No.1 and the Tirol Concerto.
His keyboard works have their strong points as well.


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## Enthusiast (Mar 5, 2016)

Fredx2098 said:


> I've seen a lot of negativity about his music lately. I've always loved everything I've heard of his. If you don't like minimalism, you're not gonna like Glass. I do like minimalism (I don't really "love" it though) and I think he's a good example, though maybe it's a bit on-the-nose.


Good to see you, again, Fred - you seem to have been absent from the site for a while?

My problem with Glass is at least partly about disappointment. He could have gone in some interesting directions but I feel he reneged on that "obligation"! And I do not greatly enjoy recent works by Adams - who started as a minimalist, I guess - who also seems to me to have allowed his popularity to go to his head, producing works that seem to manipulate audiences with lazy and frequently rather kitsch populism!

But I don't hate minimalism. I certainly do not take the views (as some people do) that it is saving music or is the most important movement in the music of the last 70 years but I do respect Steve Reich's music and like most of what I know of his (a few pieces) and I also like Riley (not really minimalist as such) quite a lot. I also like some of the East European so-called Holy Minimalism (Part etc.) without feeling that it has saved music.


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

"Train" from _Einstein on the Beach_ I like, the rest of that work not so much, and what followed even less. I'm definitely a "Glass half empty" sort of person.


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## elgar's ghost (Aug 8, 2010)

Nice to hear from you again, Crudblud - I hope you are well.


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## chill782002 (Jan 12, 2017)

I really like Philip Glass. "Glassworks" and "Koyaanisqatsi" are great albums and "Akhnaten" is my favourite opera by any composer, no mean feat as opera is something I usually stay well away from.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

Don't know that much of his music - some from movies - but I've always liked this. Several balletophile friends have said it's their favorite ballet.


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## isorhythm (Jan 2, 2015)

Oh I forgot, his score to the movie _Kundun_ was good.


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## Captainnumber36 (Jan 19, 2017)

beetzart said:


> I found this piece yesterday and the beautiful descending chromatics in the latter part are something special. At least I think so anyway.


I enjoy this very much, thanks for sharing!


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## Crudblud (Dec 29, 2011)

elgars ghost said:


> Nice to hear from you again, Crudblud - I hope you are well.


Hello! Yes, I'm getting by, more or less.


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## mmsbls (Mar 6, 2011)

I enjoy many of Glass's works such as Violin Concerto No. 1, String Quartet No. 4 (3 and 5 a bit as well), and Glassworks. I especially enjoy Aguas da Amazonia. I have started to listen to a couple of operas (Satyagraha was one), but I found them somewhat boring and never finished.


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## EdwardBast (Nov 25, 2013)

My first encounter with Glass was coming upon his ensemble performing at the Three Rivers Art Festival in Pittsburgh while my friends and I were tripping. Given the saxophone and singing and electronic keyboard, I thought it was a really bad prog rock group that needed help on the composition end. I couldn't escape that racket fast enough. My opinion hasn't improved since. The piece in the OP sounds like lame pop. Seeing him listed as the composer of a film score will usually discourage me from seeing the film.


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## Albert Berry (Oct 5, 2018)

beetzart said:


> I found this piece yesterday and the beautiful descending chromatics in the latter part are something special. At least I think so anyway.


I'm afraid this music leaves me cold. I would probably find it OK as the background in the wine bar, but otherwise, it's not to my taste ...


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## Haydn70 (Jan 8, 2017)

EdwardBast said:


> Given the saxophone and singing and electronic keyboard, I thought it was a really bad prog rock group that needed help on the composition end. I couldn't escape that racket fast enough. My opinion hasn't improved since. The piece in the OP sounds like lame pop.


"Bad prog rock" and "lame pop"...excellent ways to describe his music. I have often said to fellow musicians that Glass' music is merely pop music padded and stretched out to absurdly long time spans. At least pop musicians have the good sense to keep their music (for the most part) restricted to sensible time spans.


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## Bluecrab (Jun 24, 2014)

I've always found this video highly entertaining.






I've also noticed that if you want to be part of the oh-so-hip crowd in downtown/Brooklyn in NYC, it's obligatory to listen to Philip Glass.

I share Elliott Carter's opinion of Glass, Reich, and all the rest of the minimalists (I would exclude Terry Riley and John Adams from that group).


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## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

Good video. See though, once a person has defined a style it's very easy for all and sundry to mimic them or play 'like' them, but no-one does this _before _the style has been defined.

Everything is easy once someone else has shown you how, but what about when no-one is there to show you, just you yourself?


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## MusicSybarite (Aug 17, 2017)

I understand that others dislike his music, but he composed some interesting works such as the 2 violin concertos, the 1st piano concerto, and the Concerto Fantasy for two timpanists and orchestra. The latter is a stunning display of great timpani writing, it's possibly my favorite work by him.


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

Bluecrab said:


> I've always found this video highly entertaining.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Yes, highly entertaining video. The only difference between Philip Glass and Mr. Torley is that Glass's net worth is around $35 million and Mr. Torley's is probably considerably less. That's the difference between the real and the imitation, and those who've hired Glass for the 142 movies and documentary soundtracks he's done are apparently aware of the difference, or they could have hired Torley for considerably less money if Glass's music was that easy to imitate. Torley might have been much better served by finding his own voice rather than analyzing the music of one the most successful composers of the 20th century, whether one cares for Glass or not. I thought Glass's soundtrack for "The Hours" was perfect for the psychological content of the film.

https://www.celebritynetworth.com/richest-celebrities/philip-glass-net-worth/


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## arpeggio (Oct 4, 2012)

Subjective note: Some of it I like, some of it I dislike.

Samples of two works I like:











For some reason his concertos appeal to me more than his other works. Why? I have no idea.


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## arpeggio (Oct 4, 2012)

Larkenfield said:


> Amy Dickson's arrangement for soprano saxophone of Glass's First Violin Concerto... requires the use of circular breathing, certainly a 20th-century approach to the writing of a concerto other than Mendelssohn et alia. It also adds that she looks amazing and is tan, trim, and beautiful in this difficult performance... It's difficult to control the instrument and not 'honk' in the lower register, and she manages quite well in a work that I find highly characteristic of the composer for his use of repetition, rhythm, and patterns that build emotional intensity-lyrical, flowing, energetic... He's followed his own muse and I feel there's value in that and a certain recognizability of style that can be immediately heard. Is that the mark of a great composer? Perhaps the jury is still out on the value of Minimalism and Glass's distinctive sound like in so many other areas of contemporary music. But I like the psychological, innermost, introspective quality of his music and that it's not jarring and fragmented like some of his modern contemporaries with their oftentimes strident point of view. I find his works deceptively simple on the surface but with something dramatic & deeper at the center... Bravo to the talented Ms. Dickson.


As a wind player her performance is amazing. For me Glass's style lends itself to the sound of the saxophone. I prefer it to the violin.


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## Doctuses (Jun 11, 2018)

ArsMusica said:


> I dislike (intensely) his music. It is extremely boring/tiresome. I dislike (intensely) the entire 'minimalist' aesthetic is all its manifestations.
> 
> His music (and that of the other minimalists) has been called "classical music for people who don't classical music". In other words, the rock/pop crowd. No surprise because of its similarity to rock music: simple harmonic and melodic palette and excessive repetition.
> 
> At least, however, his music is not sonically offensive like serial/atonal music.


I don't feel as intensely but I generally echo these sentiments


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

I was listening to a few CDs of Indian classical music a while back, including sitar music by Ravi Shankar. Then, for some reason, I listened to a CD of Ravi Shankar and Philip Glass playing music together mostly in Glass's style. I was shocked. It was like stepping down from graduate school to second grade.


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## Merl (Jul 28, 2016)

Like a few pieces but the majority does nowt for me (see also Steve Reich, to a lesser extent). When I think of Glass this clip from the Simpsons always comes to mind.......


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## eugeneonagain (May 14, 2017)

Even the orchestra rushes after the crowd at the back.:lol: Poor Philip, he's another easy target for comedy.


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## Sid James (Feb 7, 2009)

I like his Violin Concerto #1, String Quartet #2 and the Metamorphosis piano pieces. 

On a personal note, I like his persistence. Even though he had success with his early operas, he continued to drive his cab around New York. With the huge costs involved, you're unlikely to make money with opera. 

His later projects, including Glassworks, touring with his piano, film scores and orchestral commissions meant he could devote himself fully to music.


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## Jacck (Dec 24, 2017)

pleasant but superficial, impossible to listen to for long because it gets boring. I read that Glass and the minimalists were inspired by gamelan


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## Phil loves classical (Feb 8, 2017)

I can't shake away the feeling of claustrophobia when listening to his music. John Adams I do like.


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## Fredx2098 (Jun 24, 2018)

What's so appealing about saying you hate Glass over and over and over and over again? You're performing minimalism yourselves. The reason you don't like it is because it's minimalism. That's alright. It's not a hard idea to grasp, so why is it such a hot topic? Don't like Glass, don't listen to Glass. Don't like that he's famous? Get over it. There's are so, so many more people who are more famous and less deserving. It doesn't bother me as much as people complaining about it though.


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## beetzart (Dec 30, 2009)

Phil loves classical said:


> I can't shake away the feeling of claustrophobia when listening to his music. John Adams I do like.


Lol, really? Does Handel make you agoraphobic by any chance? Sorry, but I am curious as to how music by anyone can make you feel like that.


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## DeepR (Apr 13, 2012)

I like a lot of music with repetitive elements (in fact I've started several threads about it in the non-classical forum), mostly electronic music, but Philip Glass is not among it. 
His music did work for me while watching Koyaanisqatsi.


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## endelbendel (Jul 7, 2018)

First hearings usually spectacular. Then, hard to listen to same piece twice.


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## Bluecrab (Jun 24, 2014)

Fredx2098 said:


> What's so appealing about saying you hate Glass over and over and over and over again? You're performing minimalism yourselves. The reason you don't like it is because it's minimalism. That's alright. It's not a hard idea to grasp, so why is it such a hot topic? Don't like Glass, don't listen to Glass. Don't like that he's famous? Get over it. There's are so, so many more people who are more famous and less deserving. It doesn't bother me as much as people complaining about it though.


I haven't seen anybody complaining about Glass's fame. What are you talking about?

As for the posts citing dislike (or even hate) of Glass's music, reread the OP: "What do you think of the music of Philip Glass?" This naturally invites both positive and negative responses. And it's obvious that quite a number of members who have responded do not like his music or are at best somewhat indifferent to it.


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## Fredx2098 (Jun 24, 2018)

Bluecrab said:


> I haven't seen anybody complaining about Glass's fame. What are you talking about?
> 
> As for the posts citing dislike (or even hate) of Glass's music, reread the OP: "What do you think of the music of Philip Glass?" This naturally invites both positive and negative responses. And it's obvious that quite a number of members who have responded do not like his music or are at best somewhat indifferent to it.


If he wasn't famous there wouldn't really be a discussion. It would be talking about a composer who nobody knows about. Conservative listeners wouldn't know about him. Same with Cage being famous and being a common target for hatred. I'm too lazy to look back now, but I can't remember any negative comments that are much deeper than just saying his music is garbage. I'm trying to divine why people dislike it and also explain why I like it.


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

My experience is that Glass's music can be deeply hypnotic and build dramatic emotional intensity at its best because of its repetition that might initially sound boring but is capable of going beyond that stage into the psychological. He's tapped into something primal and obviously knows it. Repetition is a big factor in life. The human mind repeats its thoughts obsessively, repeatedly, overwhelmingly at times, and it's something that people may have already noticed within themselves, especially if it's been habitually negative thinking. The mind has even been studied for how repetitive certain thoughts can be. Those who are usually waiting for action, great harmonic linearity, or are impatient, are likely never to experience that deeper hypnotic quality in so much of his music. It's not just _what_ he's writing, it's _how_ he's playing it, and he's playing it in a very special deep rhythmic way that I doubt if anyone can duplicate and it might not seem like that much on the surface, at least with regard to most of his piano works where he can control everything. I think his music is better enjoyed in a context, such as the context of a movie or in the background of something where it may not be trying to attract that much attention to itself. It seems to need the visual or the story to be at its best with other things going on. Then I think it can be highly effective and draw people into his deeper world.


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## jegreenwood (Dec 25, 2015)

eugeneonagain said:


> Even the orchestra rushes after the crowd at the back.:lol: Poor Philip, he's another easy target for comedy.







Couldn't find a really good video of this. And it does go on too long. (But then so can Glass.)

By the way, David Ives, who wrote the sketch is currently working on a new musical with Stephen Sondheim.


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## millionrainbows (Jun 23, 2012)

Well, I read Philip Glass' autobiography, and have a great deal of respect for his dedication and hard work. He studied with Nadia Boulanger, for God's sake. His tonality is a form of modern tonality, so where's the problem there? He's not atonal, at least. What do these critics want, another Rachmaninoff? You gotta be Russian and go into a time-warp to accomplish that.

There's hard-core Glass and softer. If you want repetition, go to the older works. The newer stuff, like the symphonies, are very palatable and accessible. Try the Eighth Symphony, oh ye naysayers.


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## jdec (Mar 23, 2013)

millionrainbows said:


> The newer stuff, like the symphonies, are very palatable and accessible. Try the Eighth Symphony, oh ye naysayers.


I have tried it, but only once is enough for me. Life is too short and there is a lot of really great music out there.


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## millionrainbows (Jun 23, 2012)

What does it matter what "I" think of Philip Glass' music? He's already established in history as one of the 20th century's greatest composers. When I am dead and rotting in obscurity, he will have already have established his place in music history.

So who's right? An obscure, rotting corpse, or Philip Glass?


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## jdec (Mar 23, 2013)

millionrainbows said:


> What does it matter what "I" think of Philip Glass' music? *He's already established in history as one of the 20th century's greatest composers.* When I am dead and rotting in obscurity, he will have already have established his place in music history.
> 
> So who's right? An obscure, rotting corpse, or Philip Glass?


One of the *100* greatest (20th century) composers? for sure. (Hey, he ain't a Shostakovich, or a Prokofiev, Stravinsky, Strauss, Mahler, Debussy, Ravel, Bartok, Schoenberg, Berg, Messiaen, etc! )


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## Botschaft (Aug 4, 2017)

millionrainbows said:


> So who's right? An obscure, rotting corpse, or Philip Glass?


What's the difference? I can't see any.


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## TheGazzardian (Nov 24, 2018)

I'm reviving an old thread but ... I love Glass. Started with Glassworks, heard some of his soundtracks, some symphonies, concertos, operas, there is lots of good stuff to be found. I'll admit his music bears a lot of similarity to itself sometimes, but it's similarity I like, that is comforting to me and that I am able to enjoy. Is he one of the best? I don't care. I like lots of things that aren't the 'best'. I love Mozart in a very similar way to the way I love Glass ... both of them have a very distinct style that just suits me and I can turn on and listen to easily.

Anyways I was listening to Messiaen earlier today (referencing a previous post). I'd rather listen to Glass most of the time. But both are good in very different ways.


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## Lisztian (Oct 10, 2011)

I was listening to book one of his etudes a couple of days ago, and the experience is the one I tend to have with him: first three or so pieces, beautiful! Next three, getting sick of it. Last piece: HOW is this much repetition a good idea?! (to be fair, I think the last piece is just flat out more repetitive/extended than the others).


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## Red Terror (Dec 10, 2018)

Jacck said:


> pleasant but superficial, impossible to listen to for long because it gets boring. I read that Glass and the minimalists were inspired by gamelan


Inspired by Gamelan? Gamelan isn't boring.


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## RockyIII (Jan 21, 2019)

I know a lot of people really enjoy his music, and while I find him interesting, Philip Glass is just not my cup of tea for routine listening and enjoyment.

Rocky


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## fliege (Nov 7, 2017)

Enthusiast said:


> I think he is a joke but not one in good taste. Early on he was interesting. But he seems to have stood still. I did quite like his 1st violin concerto and Symphony 2 is OK. But the 2nd violin concerto is really horrible, I think. It is a good example of music that I think is deeply ugly.


That's interesting, I adore the second violin concerto. In fact, I find it quite similar to the first so I'm surprised you like that one and not the second. I'm less convinced about the "songs" for unaccompanied violin that he added to the 2nd, I find those a bit tedious, but the rest of it works for me. I saw it live once in a small church hall: the crowd loved it.


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## DeepR (Apr 13, 2012)

Music made from "constantly repeating little blocks/motifs" with gradual changes or transpositions over time, is done best in the genre of (non-classical) electronic music. Synthesizers were made for this stuff. Such as (selected albums by) Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze in their golden years (1970s), or others like Redshift, Robert Rich, Steve Roach, etc. 
I love this kind of music, for its hypnotic, transporting and trance-like effects. But I have little reason to listen to very repetitive music when it's largely made with "traditional accoustic instruments"; synthesizers can achieve a greater variety and more interesting sounds and effects that perfectly suit this type of music. Peace out!


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## millionrainbows (Jun 23, 2012)

Maybe this chart will help:

(1) Simply adore (2) like it (3) find it pleasant enough (4) appreciate it (5) find it irritating (7) don't like it (8) hate it

(1) Pure being (2) transcendent (3) spiritually bouyant (4) content (5) prone to fits of ego (6) frustated (7) Not at peace (8) dangerously ego-driven


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## BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist (Jan 13, 2019)

I'll go with (7).


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## BrahmsWasAGreatMelodist (Jan 13, 2019)

It's easy to dislike his music, and so I will. But I do think minimalism has the potential, if executed intelligently and meticulously, to be a very effective style. That being said, I still have a very hard time appreciating 99% of it.


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## zelenka (Feb 8, 2018)

I love his music, I don't care if that sounds too low IQ compared to uppish philosophers who listen to Xenakis and Stockhausen


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## Guest (Jan 23, 2019)

the music of philip glass is enjoyable in small doses, because of the repetitive character that you might also find in mozart or vivaldi; 
some of his music however is sublime and i recommend the following pieces:
-Violin Cto 1, Tirol Cto, Music in 12 parts, Metamorphosis, Wichita sutra vortex, Etudes 1-20, Mad Rush, SQ 2-5, Koyaanisquatsi, Einstein, Akhnaten, Satyagraha
Any composer who has as many great pieces as Philip belongs to the best of his era. Some of his early symphonies are good too.
I also believe our members should focus on the good works rather than rehash negative comments on lesser works.
As a matter of comparison i believe only 20 % (and i am generous) of picasso's work is very good or sublime.
So yes, despite of his failures Philip is a great composer.


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## Enthusiast (Mar 5, 2016)

fliege said:


> That's interesting, I adore the second violin concerto. In fact, I find it quite similar to the first so I'm surprised you like that one and not the second. I'm less convinced about the "songs" for unaccompanied violin that he added to the 2nd, I find those a bit tedious, but the rest of it works for me. I saw it live once in a small church hall: the crowd loved it.


Yes, it's a real crowd pleaser - manipulatively so, I feel.


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## Enthusiast (Mar 5, 2016)

zelenka said:


> I love his music, I don't care if that sounds too low IQ compared to uppish philosophers who listen to Xenakis and Stockhausen


"Uppish philosophers"?? If someone likes music that you don't you need to disparage them as well as their taste? Chip on your shoulder or what? I don't much like Glass - I did like some of his early music - but I don't need to call those who do like him names.


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

Philip Glass
Crazy in the a**
Over and over again
Until he sounds
Delightfully normal
Or like Sigmund Freud
With OCD.
:tiphat:


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## millionrainbows (Jun 23, 2012)

Isn't Bruckner comparable to Philip Glass? In both, time seems to stand still. Bruckner asked Brahms what he thought of his music, and Brahms replied that "he didn't understand it." Bruckner replied that he didn't understand Brahms' music either. Touché!
But this underscores the fact that different people hear music, and experience the passage of time in different ways.


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## DeepR (Apr 13, 2012)

Manuel Göttsching - E2-E4





For repetition enthusiasts. My favorite part is 32:00 - 35:00, with the cool guitar floating on top. When you listen to the whole thing, that guitar coming in after half an hour of hardcore repetition is some kind of godly relief. 
Ok, I admit, I don't usually listen to the whole thing, but I like it.


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## Zofia (Jan 24, 2019)

I make EDM based on Glass instrumental music for my running ᕙ(▀̿̿Ĺ̯̿̿▀̿ ̿) ᕗ


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Yesterday my copy of the new Glass symphony no. 11 arrived. Wow! Completely disrupts my previous (low) opinion of his music. Quite interesting, beautiful and frankly exciting! This is the kind of modern music that most audiences would enjoy, given a chance. Particularly interesting is the wonderful percussion writing. Try it, you might like it.


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## ZJovicic (Feb 26, 2017)

I also thought he was too repetitive and New agey, but I'm listening to this right now and I am VERY PLEASANTLY surprised. Yes repetition is used, but in general the piece is quite interesting, and sounds very good!


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

ZJovicic said:


> I also thought he was too repetitive and New agey, but I'm listening to this right now and I am VERY PLEASANTLY surprised. Yes repetition is used, but in general, the piece is quite interesting, and sounds very good!


Wow. Exquisite string quartet beautifully performed... I've never heard anyone who can do what Glass does, as a compliment. His music is deceptively simple, distinctive, and contemporary. This particular work has both subtle and bold dissonances with its modern, streamlined harmonies-not what most listeners might be expecting who consider him nothing but a redundant minimalist. Sensuous... luscious... gorgeous... vibrant... pungent... rhythmic... It goes on my list of contemporary masterpieces.


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## Lisztian (Oct 10, 2011)

Found his etudes hit/miss, but was very impressed with the final one:






Profound music.


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## millionrainbows (Jun 23, 2012)

mbhaub said:


> Yesterday my copy of the new Glass symphony no. 11 arrived. Wow! Completely disrupts my previous (low) opinion of his music. Quite interesting, beautiful and frankly exciting! This is the kind of modern music that most audiences would enjoy, given a chance. Particularly interesting is the wonderful percussion writing. Try it, you might like it.
> View attachment 112031


This is exactly what I've predicted that would happen with Philip Glass as he continued to write symphonies and release piano music. After the initial impression of minimalism has passed, people will begin to see that Glass is still producing some really strong symphonies. I just happened to stick with him from the beginning, and now I am seeing the real fruit of his labors.


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## Neo Romanza (May 7, 2013)

In general, I say "no" to Philip Glass but...I'm slowly warming to him. He'll never receive the kind of respect and love I have for Mahler or Shostakovich for example, but this is no reason to thumb my nose at him. Tonight, I actually listened to his first three symphonies and enjoyed them. I'm not a complete novice when it comes to Minimalism having listened to Reich, Adams, Pärt, Riley, Górecki et. al. throughout the years. I don't understand the hate for Glass to be honest. It's one thing to say you dislike the composer's music. Okay, that's fair enough, but to _hate_ the music would imply you'd like to burn every single manuscript of his compositions and wouldn't care if you did, which would be incredibly inhumane. Anyway, I like his music, but I don't love it and the same goes for so many other composers besides Glass.


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## HenryPenfold (Apr 29, 2018)

Most of his work up to around 1980 I truly value. After Einstein it’s all down-hill for me, although Akhenaten is sublime. I can’t stick any of his symphonies. IMHO, a composer who passed his prime decades ago.


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## hammeredklavier (Feb 18, 2018)

When one of his atonal medleys is played, I just run for my life.


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## John Zito (Sep 11, 2021)

I like his score for the film _Notes on a Scandal_. I tried watching the film of _Akhnaten_ at the Met, but fell asleep pretty quickly (not necessarily the music's fault). I'm otherwise uninitiated.


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## JTS (Sep 26, 2021)

Not much! I sat through part of one of his operas, Nixon in China, and it was so tedious I gave up


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

HenryPenfold said:


> Most of his work up to around 1980 I truly value. After Einstein it's all down-hill for me, although Akhenaten is sublime. I can't stick any of his symphonies. IMHO, a compose well past his use by date.


I hate to say this publicly, but I agree with you.


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## SanAntone (May 10, 2020)

I periodically listen to some Glass. Initially the music for the movie _Koyaanisqatsi_ interested me, which led me to want to try _Einstein on the Beach_, but I've never taken to his style. Next his concerto for violin (1987). Most recently I've listened to some of his later symphonies. Still no traction. I am sure I'll continue sampling his work since my experience with composers that haven't clicked will eventually begin to resonate.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

beetzart said:


> Very good, but no need to be sorry!


I disagree.

I think the time has long passed for such responses to American music.

peace


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## Aries (Nov 29, 2012)

I like the 2nd movement of his Symphony No. 9 and I like the Metamphosis Two for piano.

I dislike his use of percussion instruments. Its too much, mussy and sounds trashy to me.

I think the minimalism paradigm is too restrictive. Sometimes he creates nice sound surfaces, but I think they could be used better in movements with more contures.

Metamphosis makes me think that his minimalism is maybe better suited for a low number of instruments. Isn't it about the little changes that happen? A big orchestra and especially percussions are maybe just distracting.


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## fbjim (Mar 8, 2021)

Glass has one major problem and that's that he makes too much music. I think his essential work like the first Violin Concerto are some of the best works of 20th century minimalism- but like a few old composers, his catalog really needs curating to find the gems- he was very much someone who could go on autopilot if he was doing a standard film commission.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Fredx2098 said:


> I've seen a lot of negativity about his music lately. I've always loved everything I've heard of his. If you don't like minimalism, you're not gonna like Glass. I do like minimalism (I don't really "love" it though) and I think he's a good example, though maybe it's a bit on-the-nose.


Indeed, fresh, enthusiastic, altruistic in presentation to my ear. Then there is the debt we owe him, painting fresh a staunghy genre. He makes all of classical of more interest than it otherwise would be.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

isorhythm said:


> I like a fair amount of his stuff up to _Einstein on the Beach_ and almost nothing after that, for whatever reason. His first violin concerto is OK.


Einstein was 1976.


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## fbjim (Mar 8, 2021)

just as a comparison, i think Glass and Reich have a similar number of masterpieces - but Reich's works are in what always struck me as a far smaller, more focused catalog while Glass's oeuvre is just massive. 


i remember a writer comparing him to a modern Rossini as far as having a big catalog of works with a small number of works of immense interest goes.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Haydn70 said:


> "Bad prog rock" and "lame pop"...excellent ways to describe his music. I have often said to fellow musicians that Glass' music is merely pop music padded and stretched out to absurdly long time spans. At least pop musicians have the good sense to keep their music (for the most part) restricted to sensible time spans.


How would you describe Mozart's, the pop star of the late 1700's, music?


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Fredx2098 said:


> What's so appealing about saying you hate Glass over and over and over and over again? You're performing minimalism yourselves. The reason you don't like it is because it's minimalism. That's alright. It's not a hard idea to grasp, so *why is it such a hot topic?* Don't like Glass, don't listen to Glass. Don't like that he's famous? Get over it. There's are so, so many more people who are more famous and less deserving. It doesn't bother me as much as people complaining about it though.


Resentment. It's out of tribe.

This is all very obvious. :tiphat:


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

Enthusiast said:


> "Uppish philosophers"?? If someone likes music that you don't you need to disparage them as well as their taste? Chip on your shoulder or what? I don't much like Glass - I did like some of his early music - but I don't need to call those who do like him names.


This is so ironic. This thread is dedicated to trashing the Glass enthusiasts and you become angered at such a trite utterance in one post?

People, special a species are we.

Peace


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## fbjim (Mar 8, 2021)

These are at least two year old posts. That said I was always curious at Glass (and minimalism, generally) status as a bete noir given that he's one of the few modern composers who a guy on the street might actually know the name of. I think his work is more interesting than a punchline.


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## eljr (Aug 8, 2015)

JTS said:


> Not much! I sat through part of one of his operas, Nixon in China, and it was so tedious I gave up


This thread is about Philip Glass.


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## Neo Romanza (May 7, 2013)

HenryPenfold said:


> Most of his work up to around 1980 I truly value. After Einstein it's all down-hill for me, although Akhenaten is sublime. I can't stick any of his symphonies. IMHO, a compose well past his use by date.


This is what I've read from many hardcore Glass fans that after that period of innovation where he turned his attention to more symphonic music is where many listeners stepped off the boat.

I'll be honest here and say I don't know much about Glass' music at all and I've done my damnedest to ignore the naysayers, because there's plenty of them just as there are plenty of listeners who think Glass can do no wrong. I don't wish to be a part of either camp, but rather right in the middle where I can listen with an open-mind and not be swayed by either camp. So far, I haven't really heard anything that has resonated strongly with me, but I'm going to keep listening.


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## HenryPenfold (Apr 29, 2018)

Neo Romanza said:


> This is what I've read from many hardcore Glass fans that after that period of innovation where he turned his attention to more symphonic music is where many listeners stepped off the boat.
> 
> I'll be honest here and say I don't know much about Glass' music at all and I've done my damnedest to ignore the naysayers, because there's plenty of them just as there are plenty of listeners who think Glass can do no wrong. I don't wish to be a part of either camp, but rather right in the middle where I can listen with an open-mind and not be swayed by either camp. So far, I haven't really heard anything that has resonated strongly with me, but I'm going to keep listening.


I'm not a nay-sayer, I really like Glass' music, spent lots of my hard earned cash on it and still listen to him. However, I think he went off the boil around 1980 and I don't enjoy much after that. I don't understand what happened to his previous creativity.


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## fluteman (Dec 7, 2015)

fbjim said:


> he's one of the few modern composers who a guy on the street might actually know the name of.


Though I'm no Glass expert and haven't even heard most of his considerable catalog, it seems to me this is the key point. He isn't just a minimalist. He has combined various western classical, popular and non-western traditions in a unique, paradigm-shifting way. Not only might a guy on the street know his name, but anyone who has been watching tv and going to the movies for the past 30 or more years likely will recognize various aspects of his style, if not some of his actual music.

So, for all those who say nobody listens to modern art music written after 1950 other than that of John Williams, Philip Glass is one of the leading counter examples. I'm not going to guess what that means for his long-term legacy, but his influence already has been too great for him to be forgotten very easily.


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## Neo Romanza (May 7, 2013)

HenryPenfold said:


> I'm not a nay-sayer, I really like Glass' music, spent lots of my hard earned cash on it and still listen to him. However, I think he went off the boil around 1980 and I don't enjoy much after that. I don't understand what happened to his previous creativity.


I think Glass reached a point where he wanted to find different avenues of expression and get away from the works that had already "made his name" so to speak. Nothing wrong with an artist that wants to break away from their past style if that's what they want to do. All I can do is listen and decide for myself whether it's worth my time or not.


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## KevinJS (Sep 24, 2021)

I have Itaipu/The Canyon and find it to be a pleasant listen. So much so that I have been intending to find more of his work. 

(Robert Shaw/Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus)


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## Mandryka (Feb 22, 2013)

KevinJS said:


> I have Itaipu/The Canyon and find it to be a pleasant listen. So much so that I have been intending to find more of his work.
> 
> (Robert Shaw/Atlanta Symphony Orchestra & Chorus)


Yes Itaipu is an outstanding piece.

Much of his music is very sweet. This piece is one of the few that avoids sweetness, and then his genius comes through.


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## Simon Moon (Oct 10, 2013)

I used to be a pretty big fan.

Not so much anymore. I still own a few Glass recordings (original LP of "Einstein on the Beach"), and a few others.

Maybe I should try some of later works...


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## Livly_Station (Jan 8, 2014)

Don't know many of his works (I'm more familiar with other minimalists), but _Koyaanisqatsi_ is a *great* film! and the music is intrinsic to the project.


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