Saturday Sounds - Philip Glass and More

Earlier this week, I attended the world premiere of Philip Glass' Symphony No. 13 at Roy Thompson Hall in Toronto. The performance, by Ottawa's National Arts Centre Orchestra, was something of a disappointment. The symphony felt disjointed and somewhat muddled. The complex rhythms were occasionally imprecise and the tone of the orchestra muddy. (The acoustics in the hall are fine and the Shostakovitch symphony was perfectly clear and performed precisely). There were moments of beauty, especially in the second movement, but I don't think this symphony ranks among Glass' best works. More interesting was his previous Symphony No. 12, based (very loosely) on David Bowie's Lodger.

Should you wish to experience the symphony for yourself, the NAC will be performing the US premiere at Carnegie Hall Tuesday, followed by concerts in Ottawa, one of which will be webcast. 

This performance led me to look at some of Glass' other symphonies. I've listened to most of them over the last few years, and I've come to the conclusion that the symphonic form is not his strong point. I'm not sure why, but his orchestra scores don't seem to have the definition and colour that I've heard in other composers. His music works better with smaller ensembles. A case in point is the music for his opera, Akhanten, which used a limited orchestra (it had to fit the orchestra pit where it was first performed). 

Simplicity can be a virtue. Other composers have found this. Compare, for example, the original ballet score of Aaron Copland's Appalachian Spring to the full orchestral version. I've heard both performed live and there's no doubt that the smaller orchestra suits the music much more than the full symphony orchestra. 

Finally, here's John Adams' Doctor Atomic Symphony, based on his opera of the same name. I heard this performed by the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in the Before Times, and it was a revelation. The swirling rhythms and colours of the orchestra were incredibly beautiful. I much prefer Glass' operas to Adams'; I think Glass has written some of the best operatic scores of the 20th century, but Adams' use of the symphony orchestra is hard to beat.