Minimalists
A survey of this controversial and distinctive style of concert music.
2008 printing
K Robert Schwartz
- The first overview of Minimalism aimed at a general public
- Traces the lives of the Minimalist composers, of whom Philip Glass and Steve Reich are the best known, and discusses their most significant works
- Sets the Minimalists in the context of the artistic milieu from which they emerged, discussing the work of predecessors such as La Monte Young and Terry Riley
- By looking at the work of their successors, such as John Adams, Michael Nyman, Louis Andriessen and Arvo Part, new light is thrown on the Minimalists themselves
Paperback
156 x 220 mm, 6 1/8 x 8 5/8 in
240 pp
80 black and white illustrations
ISBN 9780714847733
0714847739
Minimalism is arguably the most popular style of concert music that the late twentieth century produced, revered by the widest possible audience, including fans of rock, jazz and classical music. It is an ecstatic and vibrant movement that interweaves classical, popular and non-Western elements to create a highly distinctive style that restores the severed link between composer and audience.
The movement is surveyed here from its earliest beginnings, through a study of its principal American exponents – La Monte Young, Terry Riley, Steve Reich and Philip Glass – and on to the 'post-minimalism' of John Adams, Michael Nyman, Louis Andriessen and Arvo Pärt.
K Robert Schwarz taught at Brooklyn College, City University of New York, and wrote for the New York Times, Opera News and Rolling Stone.
'Attractively produced, easily readable.' (Musical Times)
'As a series, Phaidon's 20th Century Composers has brought remarkable variety and a welter of information, both necessary and delightfully trivial. Intended both for the general reader and for the more enthusiatically musical...' (The Scotsman)