Philip Glass is probably the best known modern classical composer. On one hand, his work is highly regarded in classical music circles, but at the same time, he has collaborated with a number of modern musicians as well as writers and filmmakers. The names include David Bowie, Paul Simon, David Byrne, Twyla Tharp, Allen Ginsberg, Doris Lessing, Woody Allen, and Martin Scorsese.
Glass has written an abundance of music, so it is no wonder that some of the music manuscripts got lost in the process. One such piece, as New Musical Express (NME) and a number of other news outlets report, was performed in 1970 and then promptly disappeared.
The piece in question is “Music In 8 Parts,” shared “after the American composer’s Music For Fifths (1969) but before Music With Changing Parts (1971) and Music In 12 Parts (1971-74).” But then back in 2017, the manuscript resurfaced at an auction at Christie’s, when it sold for $43,750. The following year, it was acquired by Glass’ publishing company.
Fifty years on, The Philip Glass Ensemble, founded by the composer back in 1968 recorded and released the piece for Orange Mountain Music. According to Forbes, “’Music in Eight Parts’ is immediately recognizable as being of Glass’s minimalist musical language in full stride and the recording, although made in five different locations, is a superb production.”
NME also notes that Glass has “won awards for a number of film scores including 1998’s The Truman Show (Academy Award for Best Original Score) and a BAFTA for 2002’s The Hours.”
