Anton Batagov

I was about to begin this text with something like this: "True minimalists lived in the 16 th – 17 th centuries." And then I thought you might say: "Hmm, there he goes again talking about that minimalism." And it’s true: the word is so unfit. Human language is very limited, and every time we attempt to express something important we discover that our language simply doesn't work.

This piano suite was commissioned by The Manege exhibition center, Saint Petersburg, for the project Quietude and Joy. Music being played in exhibition halls is not a novelty. If you google for exhibition background music you will find collections of music ‘suitable’ for all sorts of exhibitions. This is similar to soundtrack libraries offering material for all sorts of movies. But in this case the idea was to create original music that will become an integral part of that particular exhibition while being a composition that could be performed live and released as an album.

The soundtrack for the film The Hours (2002), with its all-star cast including Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman, has been one of Philip Glass' most popular works, with a BAFTA award in Britain having been a key step in spreading Glass' reputation beyond the U.S. Perhaps the task of writing specifically representational music helps him hone his style (see also his big operas of the 1970s and '80s). The music has also had a second life in Michael Riesman and Nico Muhly's piano version; in Muhly's case, you might argue for a degree of influence.