Please note, registration is NOW OPEN for this course. Our other courses will be available September 2 for registration.
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Philip Glass, still active at the age of 88, was once considered a composer whose “minimalist” works were an acquired taste that many chose not to acquire. As his operas and film scores became popular, his fame grew to the point that he has been referred to as “one of the foremost creative geniuses of the last fifty years.”
This course will track his development as a man and artist from his childhood in Baltimore to his interactions around the globe with teachers and collaborators such as Ravi Shankar, Nadia Boulanger, Martin Scorsese, Richard Serra, and Paul Simon. Excerpts from key chamber works, operas such as Satyagraha, and films such as The Thin Blue Line will be examined.
Much of the course will be based on Glass’s memoir "Words Without Music" and the excellent documentary “Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts” by Scott Hicks.
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Instructor & Guest Lecturers:
Instructor Bob Rackmales is a retired member of the U.S. Foreign Service, with multiple assignments in Africa and Europe. Like Philip Glass, Bob was born in Baltimore and members of his family were close to the Glass family. Glass’s sister Sheppie was married to a fellow Foreign Service officer, Morton Abramowitz, and also served in the State Department, in a senior position dealing with refugee issues. Bob has degrees in history from Johns Hopkins and Indiana universities. Last year he co-taught the course “Music, War, and History” at Hammer Hall.
Guest lecturer, pianist Sean Fleming, is an in-demand keyboard artist, accompanist, and arranger. He performs regularly with many Lincoln County choral organizations, including the Lincoln Festival Chorus, St. Cecilia Chamber Choir, Sheepscot Valley Chorus, and Tapestry Singers. Fleming has directed or accompanied more than 80 musical theater productions nationwide. A piano and organ recitalist who has performed throughout the United States, Fleming studied organ and piano with Ray Cornils, John Doney, Michael Lindsey, and Gerald McGee. He was the recipient of a 2009 St. Botolph Club Foundation grant award.
Guest Lecturer, violinist Luke Fatora, has performed in a wide variety of venues, from fiddling for square dances to performing contemporary and traditional classical music in the World Financial Center and Carnegie Hall. Fatora completed his B.M. at the Oberlin Conservatory and a M.M. from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and has a distinguished career teaching individuals and coaching ensembles while also performing chamber music in experimental and traditional concert series.
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LOCATION & HOW TO REGISTER:
This course, offered jointly by Belfast Senior College, Coastal Senior College, and Bay Chamber Concerts and Music School, will be held at Hammer Hall in the Bay Chamber Music School facility in Camden, fully accessible with easy parking.
- If you are a member of Belfast Senior College or Coastal Senior College, please register through your respective college.
- If you are not a senior college member, please register directly through Bay Chamber Concerts.
