Akhnaten

by Philip Glass

Akhnaten cover art
  • Type: Album
  • Released: 1987
  • Label: CBS Masterworks
  • Country: United States
  • Length: 2:08:29
  • Community rating: 4.01/5 from 3 ratings

Album Notes & Community Reviews

Concluding his biographical opera trilogy, Glass utilizes ancient texts and a distinct orchestra omitting violins to chronicle the life of the revolutionary Egyptian pharaoh. The sweeping, polyphonic choral arrangements and hypnotic orchestral arpeggios result in an epic, deeply ritualistic post-minimalist achievement.

Genres

Descriptors: history, complex, orchestral, ritualistic, repetitive, technical, polyphonic, operatic, vocal, choral, minimal

Tracklist

  1. Akhnaten: Act I, Prelude: Refrain - Verse 1 - Verse 2 (10:44)
  2. Akhnaten: Act I, Prelude: Verse 3 (0:40)
  3. Akhnaten: Act I, Scene 1: Funeral of Amenhotep III (8:59)
  4. Akhnaten: Act I, Scene 2: Coronation of Akhnaten (17:14)
  5. Akhnaten: Act I, Scene 3: Window of Appearances (9:01)
  6. Akhnaten: Act II, Scene 1: Temple (12:57)
  7. Akhnaten: Act II, Scene 2: Akhnaten and Nefertiti (10:10)
  8. Akhnaten: Act II, Scene 3: The City - Dance (2:30)
  9. Akhnaten: Act II, Scene 3: Dance (5:10)
  10. Akhnaten: Act II, Scene 4: Hymn (13:35)
  11. Akhnaten: Act III, Scene 1: The Family (11:35)
  12. Akhnaten: Act III, Scene 2: Attack and Fall (7:43)
  13. Akhnaten: Act III, Scene 3: The Ruins (7:29)
  14. Akhnaten: Act III, Scene 4: Epilogue (10:36)

Credits

  • Philip Glass - primary artist, composed by, libretto by
  • Dennis Russell Davies - conductor
  • Anton Zapf - conductor [assistant], additional conductor
  • Richard Riddell - libretto by [libretto assistance]
  • Robert Israel - libretto by [libretto assistance]
  • Shalom Goldman - libretto by [libretto assistance]
  • Paul Esswood - voice [akhnaten]
  • Helmut Holzapfel - voice [amon high priest]

More from Philip Glass: full discography