Philip Glass

The ’Low’ Symphony composed in the spring of 1992 is based on the record ‘Low’ by David Bowie and Brian Eno first released in 1977. The record consisted of a number of songs and instrumentals and used techniqueswhich were similar to procedures used by composers working in new and experimental music. As such this record was widely appreciated by musicians working both in the field of ‘pop’ music and in experimental music and was alandmark work of that period.Having taken themes from three of the instrumentals on the record and combining them with material of his own Glass has used them as the basis of three movements of this Symphony.Thisis the Full Score of Glass’ orchestral work.

Philip Glass has produced ten symphonies so far the ones immediately preceding this one inspired by sources as diverse as Allen Ginsberg poetry Aboriginal writings and Native American song. Symphony No 8 however has noreferences to non-musical materials and takes as its subject according to Glass ‘the language of music itself’.The three-movement work does not conform to classical symphonic form with an extended twenty-minute first movement a slow passacaglia for the second movement and a short dense theme joined by a counter theme then ending with an extended cadence to complete the work in the third movement. Symphony No 8 was commissioned by the BrucknerOrchester Linz under the direction of Dennis Russell Davis.American composer Philip Glass is widely known as one of the most celebrated influential and prolific of the modern composers. He is frequently referred to as aminimalist though he prefers to call himself a composer of ‘music with repetitive structures.’ His operas among them the renowned Einstein On The Beach are performed across the globe and he has created work for small andlarge ensembles film and experimental theatre and founded his own performing group The Philip Glass Ensemble.