Search - Philip Glass, Arthur Murphy, Steve Chambers :: Philip Glass: Two Pages; Contrary Motion; Music in Fifths; Music in Similar Motion

Wow.

Thomas S. Ferguson | Sterling, Virginia | 06/13/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Okay, first off, this is only my second Glass CD (the first being Koyaanisqatsi), so I'm probably not the best person to be reviewing this. Oh well. The first time I listened to it, it nearly drove me insane. This isn't anything like his later pieces; gimmie a second to think of a way to explain how this thing sounds.Take four sets of an infinite number of toothpicks, each set having a different color. Now, lay them out in order, from end to end (red, blue, green, yellow, red, blue, green, yellow etc.). Every few cycles, sneak in a new toothpick or take one out. Eventually, you might end up with about twenty blue toothpicks lined up in a row, so of course you've got to start taking them out, one by one. This type of music isn't like Glass' later works because it doesn't conform to anything like a constant tempo or a constant number of notes in a measure. His later stuff uses a kind of "layering" technique, which actually obeys some rules of traditional composition.Music that acts like this shouldn't be entertaining... but it is anyways. I find myself putting this thing in my CD player at least once or twice a week.I love it. It's addictive. I can't stop listening. Someone, please help me."

This one sneaks up on you!

Kevin Currie-Knight | Newark, Delaware | 02/04/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I'm a going-on-four-year Glass fan. At the risk of sounding snobbish, I wouldn't reccomend this disc to anyone who's spent less time than that as a Glass fan. Not that this music is not delicious; in fact - if you are a fan of the his early electronic pieces, this CD is a godsend (if you believe in that sort of thing.) For those who are new to Glass, let me try and put it delicately but realistically. Have you ever heard the caricatures or jokes about Glass's minimalism, endlessly repeating? The infamous South Park episode where the character Glass writes a piece consisting of one note? Well, if you aren't familiar with his music, this will sound like that. Rest assured, it grows on you, but you will need tons of patience to become an addict like me! For the rest of us, don't hesitate. For the "early" fans, there IS NO alternative!!! Here's a brief description:Two Pages: Michael Riesman on piano, Glass on organ. Very sparse piece starting with repeating chromatic 5 note sequence in minor key, gradually adding notes on the end of the prhase, taking notes away from the beginning of the phrase. This one will suprise you how fast it grows on you!!Music in Contrary Motion: Suprising use of intricate counterpoint for early Glass. Minor key solo organ alternating between I and V chord with counterpoint overtop. Phrases get longer according to a planned sequence that (according to Glass) can be added ad infinitum and go on for days. This one's a little too tense for me. Music in fifths (and) Music in Similar Motion: I put these together as the concept (except for the intervals involved) is similar. Again, repeated phrases with expanding and contrasting sequences but both of these are for full ensemble (back in the Dickie Landry days). Music in fifths is a joke as it is written entirely in fifths, the cardinal sin of counterpoint. All in all, a good disc. The recordings are old but remastered so the quality is good and like I mentioned before, despite the EXTREME sparsity of these pieces, they will grow on you quicker than you think!"

Music as Theory

Gary Schroeder | 10/05/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This is another Glass CD that's difficult to rate. This disc serves more as an important historical note than as entertaining music. It shows the very early stages of Glass' development as a truly unique composer. Many of the ideas that he would use to great effect in later works like "Koyaanisqatsi" are heard here in their germinal form. In a Glass musical chronology, it's easy to see how works like "Music in 12 Parts" emerged from pieces like "Music in Fifths". I really enjoy the last four sections from "Music in Twelve Parts" because it is has a traditional musicality to it that Glass' very early work did not. On this disc, Glass is still forming his repetitive, minimalist style...sans the listenable musicality that he would infuse in later works. ("Music in Similar Motion" probably comes closest to being listenable for extended periods and could easily bemistaken for one of the first three sections of "Music in 12 Parts".) This disc is heavy on abstract theory, but short on what most would percieve as "music". It should only be undertaken by those who are hard core fans or "completists" who want to hear how it all began."