Philip Glass Research Paper

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Philip Glass is an esteemed American composer, who is known for his innovative instrumental, operatic and vocal music. Possessing a minimalist style, Glass’ compositions have often been seen as controversial. Thus, his story is one of a man with remarkable character and interest. A student of diverse musical styles, he has embraced ethnic fusion, modern world fusion, opera, chamber music, ballet and keyboards. Philip Glass has worked with world musicians David Byrne and Paul Simon, as well as a broad array of international musical artists that represent diverse traditions and musical stylings. Throughout his career, Philip Glass has also collaborated with legendary names such as Allen Ginsberg, Ravi Shankar, Robert Wilson, Doris Lessing and Martin Scorsese. The son of a music-shop owner, Philip Glass was born on January 31, 1937 in Baltimore Maryland. Showing his appreciation for music at an early age, Philip studied the flute as a boy. At the tender age of 15, Philip would leave home to enroll in the University of Chicago. There he would study …show more content…

Words Without Music chronicles Philip Glass’ colorful life and affirms the power of music, a power that can change the world. It has been said, that it allows readers to experience that sublime moment of creative fusion, when life merges with art. Legendary film maker Martin Scorsese was quoted as saying “I came to Philip Glass’ music very simply, without any `critical prodding or guidance I listened and transfixed. The music was dynamic and colorful and mysterious all at once, and it put me in a mind of the Zen exercise of sitting before a blank wall and contemplating the question, “what is this?” It’s music that seems to go beyond music. It doesn’t just stay with you, it infuses and energizes and haunts you, and carries a sense of being alive, a perception of existence itself. The rhythm of living this

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