New Releases by Philip Glass

In his two best-known symphonies ("Low" and "Heroes"), Philip Glass worked his minimalist magic on the tunes of David Bowie and Brian Eno, with whom he naturally felt an ambient affinity. His Third Symphony (1995), receiving its premiere recording here, looks to an entirely different tradition: the euphonious sound of the string orchestra, as explored in modern symphonies by the likes of William Schuman and Arthur Honegger and countless other works by composers from Bartk̤ to Tippett. It''s a congenial medium for Glass, creating a homogenous milieu for his placid repetitions. The symphony''s heart is its third movement, where serenely cycling harmonies support a gradually thickening web of counterpoint; this is Glass''s trademark style at its finest. Also making its overdue recorded premiere on this disc is "The Light" (1987), a more varied orchestral score with bright brass and piccolo embodying the luminosity of its title and a rhythmic impetus that choreographs the rays of light in sprightly dances. Between these major works, longtime Glass advocate Dennis Russell Davies brings us interludes from two of the composer''s operas: a lively "Mechanical Ballet" from his 1992 Metropolitan Opera commission, "The Voyage," plus two excerpts from "the CIVIL warS" that surprisingly but unmistakably make reference to Tchaikovsky''s "Nutcracker." A must for Glass fans, this album will also prove to any doubters that the elegant restraint and simplicity of his style can embrace an ample expressive range.

Glass tells in his own words of his growth from obscurity to worldwide fame; of his great teacher, Nadia Boulanger, and his early work with Ravi Shankar; of his beginning associations with the theater through the work of Mabou Mines, La Mama and Robert Wilson. -Book cover.