With the recent talk of Philip Glass and phase music, I had to find a review to read and see if I could understand what was so great about him and his work. I found a review written by Alex Ross titled “Number Nine.” It discusses the newest symphony Glass had composed as well as a look at his other notable works like “Einstein On The Beach,” Satyagraha,’ and “Music In Twelve Parts.”
Glass first starts to explain the genius behind “Einstein On The Beach.” He said, “It was a feeling of abstract intellectual delight, a pure interplay of musical and physical motion.” He also stated that some of his friends had told him that the opera had changed their lives. This certainly sparked my interest with what has already been discussed in class. I finally found some clips on youtube for the first act and I’m not too sure I get it. I do appreciate Glass wanting to do something different in the opera world. The main characters are dancers rather than a typical opera singer. The music is very repetitive and things move at a very slow pace. That part I get, but watching 30 minutes on youtube was a bear and the entire opera is about five hours and you do not get an intermission. That I do not get! The drones that are underneath the repeating three-note loop are as if someone is scratching their fingernails on a blackboard. They are incredibly annoying and made it difficult to focus on anything that may or may not be happening at a tortoise’s pace. Even Alex Ross said his first hour or so was difficult saying, “I felt a bit detached, as if watching a reenactment of lost culture.” For Ross, there was an “ah ha” moment that I couldn’t sit around listening and waiting to see if it would come. To me Glass is pushing the envelope of the listener’s tolerance and threshold of acceptance. Repetition and prolonging movement I think would bore the people that don’t really understand what Glass is doing musically, limiting your audience. I was very impressed at the dancers on stage having so much control over their bodies as they moved along the stage in slow and weird ways.
The title and the point of this article however was to honor Glass’ 75th birthday and mentioned Carnegie Hall recently played his 9th symphony for the first time on American soil. Alex Ross starts this section of the review stating, “Like many symphonists before him, Glass felt a twinge of unease as he approached the allegedly cursed No. 9—where Beethoven, Schubert, Dvorák, Bruckner, Mahler, and Vaughan Williams, among others, faltered….” I obviously don’t know music as well as Alex Ross but this was a weird statement to make based on the little I have learned about Beethoven and his 9th. Beethoven’s 9th was revolutionary and every composer after felt to, especially Wagner. Wagner felt that Beethoven ended symphony because there can be nothing better. But that is a moot point. I feel like Glass’ 9th is easier to take in and listen to. I found it somewhat interesting that repetition is still prevalent but there is much more movement and a faster tempo than “Einstein.” I agree with Alex Ross in that the structure is unpredictable and the harmonies a little hazy.
Overall the article made me want to explore Philip Glass so in that regard the press did its job. I did disagree with some statements as well as agree with others. Not a bad read and it will certainly expand your musical knowledge should you further investigate.
Read more http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/musical/2012/02/13/120213crmu_music_ross#ixzz1uOYcMiGx
