- Symphony No. 7 (Glass)
"A Toltec Symphony" (also known as "Symphony No. 7 "A
Toltec Symphony"") is a 2005symphony byPhilip Glass . TheNational Symphony Orchestra commissioned Glass to write it to commemorate the 60th birthday of conductorLeonard Slatkin . Slatkin conducted the debut concert on January 20, 2005 at the Kennedy Center, which Philip Glass attended.Composition
The symphony calls for
piccolo , 2flute s, 2oboe s, English horn, 2clarinet s,E-flat clarinet , 2bassoon s, 4 horns 3trumpet s, 3trombone s,tuba ,timpani , rattle, tom-tom,wood block ,glockenspiel ,piano ,celesta ,harp ,violin s,viola s,cello s, basses, organ, and chorus.At 30 minutes long, it has three movements:
# The Corn
# The Hikuri (the Sacred Root)
# The Blue DeerInspiration
Glass said that he wrote the symphony about
Mesoamerica and the life of Native Americans centuries before the arrival of European explorers. The first movement, "The Corn," focuses on the interplay betweenMother Nature and those she provides for. "The Hikuri (the Sacred Root)" is aroot that grows in the northern and central Mexican deserts and is thought to be a gateway to the spiritual world. Finally, the last movement is about "the holder of the Book of Knowledge," whom every truth seeking person must face.External links
* [http://www.kennedy-center.org/calendar/index.cfm?fuseaction=showEvent&event=NFCSH Kennedy Center description of debut concert]
* [http://www.kennedy-center.org/calendar/index.cfm?fuseaction=composition&composition_id=2851 Kennedy Center program notes including notes by Philip Glass]
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