“Philip Glass” music is mainly based on the style of the 1970s and ’80s, when the music would have repetitive structures, commonly known as minimalism. Philip Glass, ‘The Complete Piano Etudes’ is a a mesmerizing experience where duration doesn’t matter much, its like meditation.
The composer wrote his etudes between 1991 and 2012, and the etudes have been covered into Book 1 and Book 2 (each with ten etudes). Experienced piano players/students will appreciate the printed book, great care has been put into the quality of the materials used and the layout of the sheet music.
“The Etudes are meant to be appreciated not only by the general listener, but especially by those who have the ability and patience to learn, play and perform the music themselves.” -Philip Glass
The first batch of 10 etudes are tools “by which I would improve my piano playing,” Glass writes in a program note. The later etudes use the entire keyboard and fully exploit the piano’s dynamic range and harmonic possibilities, something that the first set doesn’t.
The later etudes are more engaging because they are more like conventional piano pieces with beginnings, middles and ends, enlarging melody with harmony, and projecting a musical style.
Glass himself has recorded some of these works, but this is one of those cases, where a specialist (Pianist Maki Namekawa) gives a better performance than the composer. Recommended for those curious about Glass (and his music style) and the piano.
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