All the best, Philip! Celebrate Philip Glass’ 85th birthday with the premiere of his piano works
On the eve of the 85th birthday of the composer Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937), an exclusive concert of his piano work for solo piano and two pianos was found on the grounds of the Brno Philharmonic in the Besední dům. All three of these opuses were written directly for the authors of longtime friends, conductor and pianist Dennis Russell Davies, and his wife, pianist Maki Namekawa.
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Six Etudes for piano Glass wrote in 1994 and dedicated it to Dennis Russell Davies on his 50th birthday. Originally, the etudes were brought to the concert stages by romantic composers Chopin, Liszt, Skrajabin and others. In the 20th century, the authors perceived them as “studies” for their own work, which was primarily not only an instrumental interpretive technique, but also possible interpretive probes into their sound world and creative style.
Made for the first time with us Piano sonata Philip Glass is only a relatively recent work from 2019. The author composed it for Maki Namekawa, commenting in one of the interviews: which she could move on and in which she could use her talent and energy. I know the way she plays very well, especially when it comes to playing my songs. She has been playing my music for some time, so I was easily able to understand how to project her real pianist experience here. “
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In 2008, the piano duo Davies – Namekawa also performed for the first time Four movements for two pianos, in which Glass in the order and character of the individual movements evokes the impression of a sonata with a quasi-dancing third movement. All parts are built of short motifs, to which new tones are added and so the harmonious structure of the composition gradually changes.
The Brno concert presented this program for the first time, followed a day later by the Ars Electronica Center in Linz, Austria.