Alter Ego

"Alter Ego" ensemble performs two of Philip Glass's minimalistic works: "Music in the Shape of Square and "600 Lines". The works on this disc are reissues of two CDs originally put out on the Italian Stradivarius label, so the Orange Mountain Label deserves credit for re-releasing them so they can find a wider audience.

Alter Ego (1994). Roman Flügel and Jörn Elling Wuttke came together as a production team in the late 80s after both collecting valuable music experience from previously being in various bands. The first Alter Ego LP appeared 1994 on Sven Vath's Harthouse label, which was at that time, one the most pioneering labels from Germany. The impact of this LP on the British music scene was headlined by remixes from Black Dog, Luke Slater & David Holmes…

Italian ensemble Alter Ego have made their name playing the post-minimalism of composers as diverse as Louis Andriessen, David Lang and Frederic Rzewski. Now they turn their attention to pre-, or perhaps more accurately, prototype minimalism in this fine two-disc survey of early Philip Glass. Rejecting the seamless cross-stitching and salamander slither of Glass’s own ensemble, Alter Ego opt for a brassier and more strident approach. This strategy proposes a subtly alternative view about which the composer obviously approves – Orange Mountain Music is his own label.