Philip Glass Albums (48)
'Animals in Love'
Release Date 3/11/2008
Tracks 15
Label Orange Mountain
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What The Critics Say
Philip Glass' original score for Laurent Charbonnier's Animals in Love is one of those beautiful soundtracks for what seems to be an odd film -- until you sit down and actually watch it. The way Glass' music, written for a chamber orchestra, flows in and out of these images underscores their actually touching moments and picks up on the human sense of strangeness when encountering the animals' mating habits, understanding that such encounters are not merely novel, but at time times reach the profound. Certainly some of his trademark tropes are here, but he's so far beyond most of those now in his method of composing that they are used merely for cinematic effect, not as compositional fundamentals. What Glass reveals about himself in this score is that he's at the very peak of his own powers as a film composer; he understands not only what's on the screen, but where viewers locate themselves in the process of seeing, making for an intuitive, sometimes dramatic piece of music that stands on its own very well. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
'Cassandra's Dream'
Release Date 1/8/2008
Tracks 12
Label Orange Mountain
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What The Critics Say
With his music for The Hours and Notes on a Scandal, Philip Glass seems to be carving out a niche for himself as a scorer of intensely dramatic films with strong female roles. Intense, dramatic and strong are all words that also apply to Notes on a Scandal's score, along with restraint: as with The Hours, the music conveys complicated emotional dynamics -- this time, between two teachers, one nearing retirement, the other a "wispy novice" -- with distance and silence as well as carefully placed moments of drama. Chilly but subdued pieces like "The History" have a subtle air of foreboding that turns into churning, nervous energy and sawing strings on "Confession" and "It's Your Choice." Even softer tracks, such as "Invitation" and "Good Girl," have an uneasiness and creepiness in their sinuous melodies that suggest the film's uncomfortable seductions. As majestic and beautifully played as this music is, it's far from easy listening -- but that's exactly its point. ~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide
'Witches of Venice'
Release Date 11/14/2006
Tracks 24
Label Orange Mountain Music
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What The Critics Say
When it comes right down to it, the music of Philip Glass is simply one of those love-it-or-hate-it propositions: most people find his signature technique (relentlessly repeating arpeggios with minimal harmonic movement and even less rhythmic variation) to be either frantically, hair-pullingly dull or mystically transcendent. So the idea behind a project like Orion seems a bit curious. Here Glass has written brief pieces designed to showcase a variety of world music traditions, including those of China, the Gambia, Brazil, Canada (in this case the Scottish-derived music of Nova Scotia), and Australia, among others. His collaborators include some fairly big names: fiddler Ashley MacIsaac, legendary sitarist Ravi Shankar, griot and kora player Foday Musa Suso, and so on. Everyone plays enthusiastically and well and the music is unfailingly pleasant, but nothing here is likely to win over those who tend toward the hair-pulling end of the spectrum of responses to Glass's music. These pieces are probably more effective in the live setting for which they were intended than they are on disc, where they generally come across as pleasant and goodheartedly multicultural, but not terribly exciting. As he often does, MacIsaac brings a special energy to the "Canada" track, and Uakti's performance on "Brazil" is also worth noting. Otherwise, this will be of interest primarily to world fusion fanatics and Glass's large cult following. ~ Rick Anderson, All Music Guide
'Music of Undertow'
Release Date 11/9/2004
Tracks 15
Label Orange Mountain
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'The Fog of War'
Release Date 12/9/2003
Tracks 34
Label Orange Mountain Music
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'Music of Candyman'
Release Date 10/14/2003
Tracks 13
Label Orange Mountain
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'Etudes for Piano, Vol.1, No.1-10'
Release Date 9/9/2003
Tracks 10
Label Orange Mountain Music
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