Philip Glass

Philip Morris Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer. He is considered one of the most influential music makers of the late 20th century. Glass developed his appreciation of music from his father, discovering later his father's side of the family had many musicians. His cousin Cevia was a classical pianist, while others had been in vaudeville. He learned his family was also related to Al Jolson. Glass's compositions have been described as minimal music, similar to other "minimalist" composers including La Monte Young, Steve Reich and Terry Riley. However, Glass has described himself instead as a composer of "music with repetitive structures", which he has helped evolve stylistically. Glass founded the Philip Glass Ensemble, with which he still performs on keyboards. He has written numerous operas and musical theatre works, eleven symphonies, eleven concertos, seven string quartets and various other chamber music, and film scores. Three of his film scores have been nominated for Academy Awards...(Read more) AllMusic claims he has "successfully bridged the gulf between the worlds of American classical and popular music."

Links to Peel
Music In 12 Parts (1971-4) was a four-hour long composition that Glass regarded as both the culmination and ending of his period writing minimalist music: it started life as a single piece with 12 instrumental parts but thenceforth took on a life of its own. Although the LP version of this piece (which is only of the first two parts of the cycle) came out on Virgin in the 1980s, it was originally released on Caroline in 1976, and it would have been this version that Peel played. He often stated that he had a liking for repetition in music and, having played early minimalist pieces towards the end of the 1960s, this would have appealed to his sensibilities. However, there is no record of him playing any of Glass' work subsequently, as it inhabited more of the world of BBC Radio 3 than Kat's Karavan.

Festive Fifty Entries

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Sessions

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Other Shows Played

 * 21 June 1976: 'Music In 12 Parts (LP-Music In Twelve Parts - Parts 1 & 2)` (Caroline)