After the big splash of Symphony No.9 back in January, OMM hasn't released a title since then. However, in September OMM has no less than three new releases:
September 4: The Passion of Ramakrishna
The large-scale oratorio which Glass composed in 2006. Now available for pre-order, this 45 minute piece for soloists, chorus, and orchestra is nothing short of a masterpiece. Composed on the heels of "the great year of 2005" (Symphony No.8, Waiting for the Barbarians), Glass was on a roll when he composed his Passion for the great Indian spiritual leader Sri Ramakrishna. The Pacific Symphony who revived the piece which they commissioned five years before is a whirling dervish under the direction of Carl St.Clair.
September 4: Einstein on the Beach CD/DVD combo
This two-disc combo pack includes a never before recording of Einstein on the Beach live at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 1984. The opera is condensed down into a one disc highlight CD, and as a bonus, a DVD of the film "The Changing Image of Opera" by Chris A.Verges which documented the BAM production in 1984. The film is well known but has never received wide-distribution.
September 11: Massimo Mercelli performs Philip Glass
Also available for pre-order, this new CD by the virtuoso Italian flutist Massimo Mercelli pairs up with the critically acclaimed group i Virtuosi Italiani and pianist Carlo Boccadoro in a recital including two world premieres: Chaotic Harmony for flute & cello, and Taoist Sacred Dace. They also perform music from Glassworks in chamber arrangements as well as a new recording of Glass' String Quartet No.3 "Mishima"
13 thoughts on “A Glass September”
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YES!!!!!!!
A recording of EOB at BAM in 1984? My life is complete.
A single CD with “highlights” of Einstein??? WTF?
I usually avoid swearing, but really, a 75 minutes CD of EOtB music is like going to a 5 stars restaurant and eating only the first course (or worse, eating a mixture of all the courses on one plate)
Fear not, the entirety of the 1984 recording will be made available on iTunes.
The whole 5-hour recording is going to be on iTunes?
Im not sure how long it is but its not 5 hours. When its in the theater its that long for a couple of reasons. The beginning low descending notes, for example, act as a kind of overture as when the doors to the theater open and the public is coming in, the PGE is already playing. And those notes go on until the house is filled. In other words, the opening notes last like 10 minutes by itself. So its obviously not like that on the recording – thus reducing the time. There are a few things like that. This recording is more along the lines of the Nonesuch recording.
Oh goody! Thanks for the info Richard (I guess that this is not the right time to complain that iTunes is not available in my part of the world…)
The CD sounds damn good for being recorded 28 (hard to believe) years ago! 🙂
I’m recieving the Einstein combo from Amazon on Saturday, but tell us, when can we expect the iTunes version coming out?
The iTunes release of the full Einstein is next Tuesday, Sept.11.
The iTunes version is a little over 3 and 1/2 hours long. This makes this the longest offically released recording of Einstein so far.
It appears to be out already on iTunes, I got it this afternoon, couldn’t wait for the CD/DVD! Fantastic! I love the emphasis on rhythm through the keyboards, something that hasn’t been shown on recordings thus far. Apparently edited versions of Knee Plays 1 and 4 and Train were featured on the Glass: A Portait of Philip in 12 Parts soundtrack.