by Ben Hogwood Photo of Glass by WNYC New York Public Radio, used from Wikipedia

On this day in 2005, the world premiere of the Symphony no.8 by Philip Glass took place. Generally the symphony has not been a form to fire the imagination of minimalist composers – Steve Reich, for instance, has not written one – but Glass has found a way of integrating symphonic thought and form with subtly repetitive figures.

The Eighth is a more exploratory, chromatic work in three movements, a substantial piece lasting nearly 40 minutes. Here it is with the performers from the premiere, the Bruckner Orchestra Linz conducted by Dennis Russell Davies:

Published post no.2,706 – Sunday 2 November 2025