Glass, Philip: Glassworlds Vol 1

   in Piano International (May, 2015)
Somehow, the objectivity of the sound of a piano suits the music of Philip Glass perfectly. Certainly that’s how it seems in Nicolas Horvath’s expert performances on this, the first of a series of Glass recordings.

The Opening from Glassworks (1981) exudes calm in its echt-Glassian construction. The programming is impeccable here, with the first movement of the Orphee Suite, The Cafe, at once immediately related to Glassworks but more external, more ragtime. The suite is a transcription of music from the Glass opera of the same name, a retelling via Cocteau of the Orpheus myth.

If the delicacy of Orphee’s Bedroom is as heady as the most Impressionist perfume, it …