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 Minimalists
(20th Century Composers) by K. Robert
Schwartz
"Many
do not consider minimalism to be an entirely respectable
field of academic pursuit," admits author K.
Robert Schwartz in his "Acknowledgments"
in The Minimalists, a volume in the Phaidon
Press Limited 20th Century Composers series. Minimalism,
with its emphasis on seemingly endless repetition,
can be physically damaging to those who attempt to
perform it either vocally or instrumentally, and is
terminally boring to those unable to tune into its
subtle charms. On the other hand, it's tremendously
popular, and has won new audiences to the concert
hall and opera house. Schwartz explores the lives
and work of America's two leading minimalists, Steve
Reich and Philip
Glass, in depth, and looks at seven other practitioners--La
Monte Young, Terry
Riley, John
Adams, Meredith
Monk, Michael
Nyman, Louis
Andriessen, and Arvo
Part--more lightly. There are some amusing side
trips here (Philip Glass refuses to acknowledge any
intellectual debts to his predecessors; his predecessors
object to his attitude), and a wealth of detail on
these composers, their foibles, and what they're trying
to achieve with their music.
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