Does Sufjan Stevens owe minimalist composer Philip Glass a fat royalty check? Not literally—I’m not saying he’s done any direct rips—but something my father pointed out when I was home for the holidays is that most of Stevens’ songs, for all their elaborate arrangements, are built on the kind of undulating foundation that’s the hallmark of Glass’ music. Now it leaps out at me whenever I hear it. Just as an exercise, put on, say, Solo Piano, then give Illinois a listen.
Sufjan in Similar Motion?
January 23rd, 2007 · 2 Comments
Tags: Art & Culture
2 responses so far ↓
1 Dan Unger // Jan 23, 2007 at 8:24 pm
I’ve noticed a closer relationship to Steve Reich (than Glass) in Sufjan … take for example the last track of Illinois. He’s mentioned Reich’s influence in interviews … here for example.
2 Sandy // Jan 24, 2007 at 8:12 am
The problem with minimalism was that it was excellent research for new material and rhetoric for the composition of music. Unfortunately most of them left it there, with the exception of Glass, who turned it into Classical Muzak.