Phillip Glass makes my head explode

Much like a cartoon character, or one of the Nazis at the end of "Raiders of the Lost Ark". But not necessarily in a bad way (if there is a good way for one's head to explode). I wanted to respect the professor's request to let others get a chance to speak in class, but since anyone who's had a class with me knows I am THAT GUY, who has something to say on absolutely every topic whether its well informed or not, I will not be silenced!!!!!

She said early in the semester that everyone hates the Phillip Glass lecture; I was expecting the worst, but was actually really surprised. This is the most complex music we have listened to all semester. Some of his "microscopic changes" in the music really are microscopic- so small that it almost sounds like simply a performer slightly missing rhythm, but its amazing how much effect these tiny changes have. It also makes it extremely difficult to listen to...there are so many layers to his music, so much texture, and the expressions are so subtle that its really a mental strain to listen to pick it all out. When you combine that with the fact that the meter changes every other measure...I believe that if I tried to sit through a 3 hour opera of that and try to actively listen to it, my head would literally explode, leaving me a headless corpse. That would be unfortunate for me, as I prefer my head remain intact, and was my primary reason for not wanting to attend a Phillip Glass opera.

That said...I'm really impressed by the guy. I love subtlety, and this guy defines subtlety...his music's most differentiating characteristic seems to be the use of nuance; its fascinating and by far (in my humble know-it-all opinion) the most interesting stuff we've listened to all semester. It may be minimalist, but I think he shows that minimalism is pretty far from dead, despite what some may think! (and yes...despite Glass's aversion to the term, it is minimalism.)