Customer Reviews

Philip Glass: Solo Piano

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This is one of my favorite Glass CDs. Repetitive like alot of Glass's work, the fine shades of difference create a meditative miracle to the ear. Metamorphosis was written in 1988 and takes its title from a play based on Kafka's short story. Numbers three and four are from Glass's incidental music to the play. Numbers one and two use themes from Glass's soundtrack to the acclaimed Errol Morris film The Thin Blue Line. Mad Rush was written for the occasion of the Dalai Lama's first public address in New York City, in the fall of 1981. Originally an open-structured or open-ended piece, it was first performed by Glass on organ during the Dalai Lama's entrance into the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Wichita Vortex Sutra is the result of a chance meeting between two long-time friends, Glass and poet Allen Ginsberg, in St. Mark's Books, a popular bookstore in the East Village. This CD will recieve alot of play time because it can be listened to with headphones or played as a background while you read a novel or work.

This all piano recording is some of the most minimal of all Glass compositions - so in order to find this appealing the listener should be a decided fan of minimalism. That being said, it is fine music indeed, Glass uses his bittersweet motifs throughout the recording, lots of repetition on a few basic chords. Mad Rush is I believe one of his best, most signature works of all time, because it totally captures his
use of counterpoint to an effect of an ethereal auditory ambience. Mad Rush alone makes this worth buying.

A superior classical piano album. An excellent way to introduce oneself to classical and classical piano music. A must for every Battlestar Galactica fan. You will understand why when you listen to the album....

Here is a great example of why a composer should not always play his own music. These pieces by Glass are small jewels, all of them. Minimalistic and extremely melancholical (as only Glass can be) they exert the most effect with a minimum of means and they have become the benchmark for melancholy minimalism (just listen to the soundtrack of Amélie for a beautiful spin-off of Glass' Metamorphosis).
However, Glass is obviously not a great pianist and his playing gets strained (even extremely a-rythmical) when the parts get more difficult to play (rapid figures and contrasting rythms are simply not easy to play). The not very well articulating instrument used in this recording does not help a bit. I feel that for this music to have the best effect it should be played as clean and rythmic as possible and, sorry Mr Glass, this playing does not live up to that expectation.
Ironically, I once saw an interview with Glass in which he complained that conductors often underestimate the difficulty of his music, well, it seems that composer and conductors alike are tarred with the same brush...

Don't play this in an elevator; don't play this while you make dinner; don't play this on a Sunday afternoon while you read; don't play this while you watch tv; don't play this while you put away the clothes; don't play this in your car; don't play this while you're getting ready for work in the morning or going to bed at night; don't play this while you're having a conversation with a friend on the phone whom you haven't seen in three years. Play this when you are ready to stop and listen. Don't even think. If you are able to listen and lose thought, you'll enjoy this music.

I've been a fan of Glass for over 15 years, mostly because I've always found his music - not just beautiful - but challenging as well. The challenge is not just whether the music is 'good' or worthy of being part of the classical 'canon' (not all of his - or any composer's music is), but that it almost always provokes the question: what is - or what constitutes - a piece of music, classical or otherwise. The 'challenge' of Glass' music often shows itself in listener's remarks when they describe his work as stark or repetitive or minimal or just plain bad. For many, his work just doesn't fit the classical or formal mold. For this reason, some attempt to categorize his work as 'ambient' or 'new age', but all this does is invoke the same aesthetic questions about the categories themselves, rather than what criteria qualifies a work of music for a category. At the level of critique, Glass' music is almost always provocative. To be more specific, what makes this work so moving and beautiful is that the composition is both simple AND complex, and both aspects are served well by the straightforwardness and purity of the solo piano. There is a sad tranquility in this music that I haven't found in too many other works of music. One reviewer here referred to this work as a "con job" - that anyone could do it. I disagree. I think the reason Glass' music is not more popular is precisely what makes it so compelling - like the theory of relativity: so few people truly 'get it', but those that do recognize it's profound truth.

Amazing music, terrific piano. Really really cool.

I found this album (and this composer) from an online forum.

It was played on the episode Valley of Darkness, in the new Battlestar Galactica (Season 2- Episode 2)

"Metamorphisis five" is what was playing in Starbuck's apartment - supposedly a recording of her father.

I first heard of Philip Glass because his piece, "Metamorphosis 1" was used in the new Battlestar Galactica series. I was afraid that this CD would be the usual assortment of beautiful, but somewhat boring, piano solos. I was suprised and pleased to be wrong! The CD is filled with piano solos that are interesting, calming, beautiful, and slightly epic. A must have for rainy afternoons, driving, or calming the soul!

What if raindrops could sing? What would they sing? They would surely skip Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds and probably Fever as well. At the top of their tiny voices they would sing Philip Glass. They would sing the five sublimely beautiful Metamorphosis before the sky clears up and the sun comes out again. And I would surely listen.

Repetitive and hypnotic at the same time like the rain banging on the roof somewhere in the country. Sad and foggy like an early morning when the dew is sparkling on the grass and the world is still half asleep.

This record is as simple as the music of the rain. But remember - how many people love listening to the rain! They may like Philip Glass as well, and I'm one of them.

I have never been a huge fan of solo music in general or piano music in particular; I respect talented musicians, but for the most part, piano music deoesn't really appeal to me. This CD, however, is completely different. I first heard one of the songs on an episode of Battlestar Galactica and fell instantly in love. Even though the music is 'minimalist' meaning that it is very repetetive and the musical lines are relatively simple (this isn't Bach or Beethoven or Mozart with several parts creating an impressively 'large-sounding' whole), every note is so precisely placed that it fits perfectly. In my opinion, the music is just as much about what isn't played as what is - all the notes that Glass plays hints at other notes that are not played.

Basically, I would have to say that minimalist piano is not for everyone - particularly people who don't like a lot of repetition. At the same time, I think that people who do not typically enjoy solo piano music should give it a chance, since minimimalist piano is not the same as the piano music we tend to hear. One of the things that I like about it is, like classical music, if you have it on in the background it is unobtrusive, but still present. I have found this music to be beautiful and relaxing and I hope that other people enjoy it as much as I have.