# Composer Phillip Glass: Recommend something that will blow me away **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 28, 2005, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/composer-phillip-glass-recommend-something-that-will-blow-me-away/323893 "2005-09-28T18:45:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2005, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/composer-phillip-glass-recommend-something-that-will-blow-me-away/323893/21 "2005-09-29T00:28:14Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > some of the verbal lyrics Some of the verbal _singing_. Lyrics would, by definition, be verbal :). ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hook](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@The\_Hook](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hook)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2005, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/composer-phillip-glass-recommend-something-that-will-blow-me-away/323893/22 "2005-09-29T00:31:55Z")
I like **Fog of War**. ---
**Author:** ![Mehitabel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8797f3/32.png) [@Mehitabel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mehitabel)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2005, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/composer-phillip-glass-recommend-something-that-will-blow-me-away/323893/23 "2005-09-29T01:35:17Z")
1. Set aside seven minutes or so. 2. Turn on the sound on your computer. 3. Go to Shawn O’Boyle’s Modern Ruins website and choose [ASYLUM (with sound)](http://oboylephoto.com/ruins/flash_page.htm). 4. Prepare to be totally creeped out to the music of ‘Island’, from his album GLASSWORKS. Beautiful, unforgettable, tragic, pictures. You may also have heard it in ‘The Hours’ during some of the Viriginia Woolf scenes. My favorite score of his is the one from ‘Mishima’. Anyway, ya gotta love a guy who was parodied in an early South Park Christmas episode. “As the sun turns, we celebrate…” “What the hell is THAT?!” ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2005, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/composer-phillip-glass-recommend-something-that-will-blow-me-away/323893/24 "2005-09-29T02:01:27Z")
I just wanted to say that apparently google crawled this thread, though strangely it read Ravi Shankar as the dominant theme of the thread, since 3 of the 4 ads are Ravi Shankar links. The 4th is Glass. **Mehitabel** , very chilling video. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Moe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moe/32/2972_2.png) [@Moe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moe)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2005, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/composer-phillip-glass-recommend-something-that-will-blow-me-away/323893/25 "2005-09-29T02:08:27Z")
OK, I promise not to hijack this thread further after this post, but somehow my last post caused google to decide that an ad about a classical music event, and one labelled “Florida Glass - free mobile service in 48 states” was even _more_ relevant to us in this thread, than links to Glass and Shankar CDs. OK, back to your regularly scheduled thread about the music of Philip Glass OK, back to your regularly scheduled thread about the music of Philip Glass OK, back to your regularly scheduled thread about the music of Philip Glass OK, back to your regularly scheduled thread about the music of Philip Glass OK, back to your regularly scheduled thread about the music of Philip Glass OK, back to your regularly scheduled thread about the music of Philip Glass OK, back to your regularly scheduled thread about the music of Philip Glass ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2005, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/composer-phillip-glass-recommend-something-that-will-blow-me-away/323893/26 "2005-09-29T12:36:36Z")
> [@Moe](#): > > I would take issue with this characterization. Glass is 2nd, only to Reich in importance for the genre (with honorable mention to Terry Riley who’s really credited with the first composition in this genre “IN C”). It is true that Glass is generally much more pop-oriented than Reich. Reich is leagues more interesting, but that doesn’t make Glass not the “real thing”. I think Glass is a brilliant composer. I think Reich is a genius. > > Music for 18 is one of his masterpieces, but I wouldn’t recommend it as a first intro to him. It’s a lot to take in and takes a lot of patience. I’d recommend “Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices, and Organ”, or “Electric Counterpoint” (hey it’s 15 electric guitars, who wouldn’t love that?) first. it’s not often that a thread gets started about minimalist music - the fact that the OP looked for recommendations was a good opportunity to chime in with a couple of other excellent minimalist pieces. I wouldn’t dismiss Glass as Kenny G the way **VCO3** did, but as you say, Glass is more commercial and perhaps the OP poster might really enjoy Reich and Part. If you haven’t heard Tabula Rasa - oh man…talk about subtle and emotionally rich. ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2005, 12:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/composer-phillip-glass-recommend-something-that-will-blow-me-away/323893/27 "2005-09-29T12:43:21Z")
One of my favorite knock-knock jokes: Knock, knock Who’s there? Phillip Glass Phillip Glass who? Knock, knock Who’s there? Phillip Glass Phillip Glass who? etc I enjoyed Koyaanisqatsi when I saw it at an IMAX theater. It is much more effective than on a TV-sized screen. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/composer-phillip-glass-recommend-something-that-will-blow-me-away/323893.md?page=1)