Philip Glass at 88
A Legacy in Sound and Silence
Tonight, as we gather to celebrate the 88th birthday of Philip Glass with a special concert at Vancouver Opera with Les Dala, we are not just marking the passage of time but honouring one of the most transformative figures in contemporary music. Glass, a composer whose work has bridged the worlds of opera, film, symphony, and chamber music, continues to shape our sonic landscape with his unmistakable style—one defined by hypnotic repetition, shifting harmonies, and a deep engagement with time itself.
Few composers in the last fifty years have had an impact as profound and wide-ranging as Glass. His music is at once meditative and propulsive, intimate yet monumental. From the pulsating arpeggios of Music in Twelve Parts to the epic grandeur of his operas like Einstein on the Beach, Glass has redefined how we experience musical time.
On this milestone occasion, let’s explore his legacy—his beginnings, his signature sound, his work in opera and film, and the philosophical underpinning of his approach to composition. This journey will be accompanied by a curated selection of performances, interviews, and excerpts that illuminate the depth of Glass’s contribution to modern music.
Beginnings: From Baltimore to the Conservatoire
Philip Glass was born on January 31, 1937, in Baltimore, Maryland. His earliest exposure to music came from his father, Ben Glass, who owned a record store. The young Glass absorbed a broad spectrum of recordings, from classical to jazz and beyond. He later studied at the University of Chicago before enrolling at the Juilliard School in New York, where he encountered composers such as Steve Reich and Terry Riley.
But it was his time in Paris, studying with the legendary pedagogue Nadia Boulanger, that crystallized his approach to composition. During this period, he also transcribed Indian music for Ravi Shankar, a collaboration that introduced him to non-Western rhythmic structures and cyclical time—an influence that would become foundational to his later work.
One of Glass’s earliest masterworks is Music in Twelve Parts (1971-74), a sprawling, ecstatic exploration of repetitive structures. Its crystalline textures and evolving patterns feel like a blueprint for what would become known as minimalism.
🎵 Listen to Music in Twelve Parts (Complete Performance by the Philip Glass Ensemble)
Minimalism and the Birth of a Style
Glass’s name is often linked to the minimalist movement, alongside Steve Reich, Terry Riley, and La Monte Young. However, Glass himself has been reluctant to accept the “minimalist” label, preferring to describe his music as having “repetitive structures.”
Minimalism in music arose in the 1960s as a reaction to the academic atonality of composers like Arnold Schoenberg and the dense serialism of Pierre Boulez. Instead of jagged dissonance and intellectual rigor, minimalist composers sought clarity, repetition, and gradual evolution. Glass’s early work, particularly Einstein on the Beach (1976), was a watershed moment, blending minimalist technique with theatrical spectacle.
🎭 Watch a Scene from Einstein on the Beach
This landmark opera, created in collaboration with director Robert Wilson, presented a radical new vision of opera—one with no traditional narrative, where time seemed to stretch and collapse simultaneously. It was a hypnotic and polarizing experience, but it signaled a new era.
Glass continued to refine his style throughout the late 70s and early 80s, with works like Glassworks (1982), which brought his sound to a wider audience.
🎶 Listen to Glassworks (Complete Album)
Opera, Cinema, and Expanding the Form
Beyond the concert hall, Glass revolutionized both opera and film scoring. His opera Satyagraha (1979), based on the life of Mahatma Gandhi, incorporated Sanskrit texts and a more lyrical minimalism that showcased his ability to create transcendent, spiritual experiences through music.
🎭 Hear “Evening Song” from Satyagraha
His Portrait Trilogy—Einstein on the Beach, Satyagraha, and Akhnaten (1983)—cemented his reputation as an operatic innovator. Akhnaten, in particular, has enjoyed a major revival in recent years, its hypnotic, chant-like vocal lines captivating new generations of audiences.
🎭 Watch “Hymn to the Sun” from Akhnaten
In cinema, Glass’s collaborations with director Godfrey Reggio on the Qatsi trilogy (Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqatsi, Naqoyqatsi) created some of the most iconic film scores of the 20th century. T
he music for Koyaanisqatsi (1982) is a masterclass in tension and release, an apocalyptic meditation on modernity.
🎥 Watch the Opening Sequence of Koyaanisqatsi
His film scores have since become legendary—Martin Scorsese’s Kundun, Stephen Daldry’s The Hours, and Paul Schrader’s Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters all bear his unmistakable sonic signature.
🎥 Listen to “Dead Things” from The Hours
The Late Style: Introspection and Evolution
In his later years, Glass’s work has become more introspective. His Piano Etudes, written over two decades, offer a deeply personal reflection on his craft. These pieces blend technical rigor with emotional depth, and they’ve been championed by pianists like Maki Namekawa and Vikingur Ólafsson.
🎹 Listen to “Etude No. 6” Performed by Vikingur Ólafsson
Glass has also embraced symphonic writing, with twelve symphonies to his name. His Symphony No. 12, based on David Bowie’s Lodger, showcases his ability to reinterpret and transform existing material into something uniquely his own.
🎼 Listen to Symphony No. 12: Lodger
Even at 88, Glass remains an active force, composing, performing, and inspiring new generations of musicians and audiences. His influence can be heard across multiple genres, from electronic music to post-rock, and his aesthetic has seeped into the DNA of modern composition.
Philip Glass’s Legacy: The Pulse of Time
What makes Philip Glass’s music so enduring? Perhaps it is its paradoxical nature—simultaneously static and in motion, simple yet complex, repetitive yet ever-changing. His compositions invite us into a different way of listening, one that rewards patience and deep attention.
His legacy is not merely in the notes he has written but in the world he has reshaped—one where opera can be abstract, where film music can be symphonic, and where minimalism can be maximal in its impact.
Tonight, as we celebrate his 88th birthday, let us not only honour Philip Glass as a composer but as a visionary who has expanded our perception of time itself. His music continues to echo, to pulse, to breathe—just as it always has, just as it always will.
Vancouver Opera’s connection to Philip Glass
Leslie Dala, Vancouver Opera’s Associate Conductor and Head of Music, has made a profound impact on the performance and interpretation of Philip Glass’s work. In 2021, he released a critically acclaimed recording of Glass’s Complete Piano Etudes, which was recognized by CBC Music as one of the top 21 classical albums of the year. This accolade highlights Dala’s deep connection to Glass’s minimalist structures and his ability to bring out the expressive depth within them.
Beyond his work as a pianist, Dala is a highly sought-after conductor, balancing his roles as Associate Conductor and Head of Music at Vancouver Opera, as well as Music Director of the Vancouver Bach Choir. His passion for contemporary and thought-provoking works continues in February 2025, when he will conduct Jonathan Dove’s opera Flight at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. This modern opera—set in an airport and exploring themes of displacement and human connection—further showcases Dala’s commitment to bringing innovative storytelling and powerful music to Vancouver audiences.
Tonight, as we celebrate his 88th birthday, let us not only honor Philip Glass as a composer but as a visionary who has expanded our perception of time itself. His music continues to echo, to pulse, to breathe—just as it always has, just as it always will.
Happy Birthday, Maestro.
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