cover image Writings on Glass: Essays, Interviews, Criticism

Writings on Glass: Essays, Interviews, Criticism

Richard Kostelanetz, Andre Kostelanetz. Schirmer Trade Books, $30 (350pp) ISBN 978-0-02-864657-2

This artfully edited assemblage of interviews, articles, reviews and critical essays reflects the belief of electroacoustic composer Kostelanetz that avant-garde minimalist Philip Glass is a genuinely popular composer, heir to Aaron Copland, who has fashioned his own aesthetic. New York-based Glass, who has written operas, concertos, symphonies, dance music, film music and chamber pieces, comes across here as highly articulate and unpretentious as he reminisces about his youth in Baltimore, where he ran his father's record store; his studies in Paris with Nadia Boulanger and Darius Milhaud; his travels in Asia, particularly India, which stimulated his musical explorations. Essays penetratingly investigate the underlying structure of his works, as well as the listener's psychological experience in interacting with Glass's lucidly clear, reiterated tapestries of sound. Special attention is given to innovation pieces such as the opera Einstein on the Beach, the encyclopedic Music in 12 Parts and Hydrogen Jukebox, a collaboration with poet Allen Ginsberg. Those who find Glass's compositions banal, overly repetitious or two-dimensional may be persuaded to take another listen by this overview, the best available introduction to Glass's music. Kostelanetz has written or edited books on John Cage, Frank Zappa and Gertrude Stein. (Apr.)