The Photographer for soloists, chorus and orchestra (1982, based on the life of Eadweard Muybridge) The Fall of the House of Usher (libretto by Arthur Yorinks after the short story by Edgar Allan Poe, 1987)

The Fog of War (Errol Morris, 2003) (an interview of Robert McNamara, former U.S. Secretary of Defense) Formally it consists of three groups of four measure phrases of three to four chords repeated four times each, ABC:

Echorus (1995)

The Civil Wars: A Tree Is Best Measured When It Is Down, Act V – The Rome Section (1983, with Robert Wilson, libretto by Robert Wilson and Maita di Niscemi, including texts by Seneca the Younger) Wu, Chia-Ying (May 2009). The Aesthetics of Minimalistic Music and a Schenkerian-Oriented Analysis of the First Movement "Opening" of Philip Glass' Glassworks. Denton, Texas: UNT Digital Library . Retrieved December 23, 2015.

The Perfect American (2011, based on the book about Walt Disney by Peter Stephan Jungk, premiered at the Teatro Real, Madrid, on January 22, 2013) Songs from Liquid Days for voices and ensemble (texts by Paul Simon, Suzanne Vega, David Byrne and Laurie Anderson, 1985) Musiikki | Säveltäjälegenda Philip Glass lainasi Sibeliukselta, unohti Mika Waltarin, palasi Helsinkiin ja kommentoi nyt Cheekin lopettamispäätöstä". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). 2017-11-16 . Retrieved 2023-05-15. Life: A Journey Through Time in seven sections for orchestra (2006, orch. by Michael Riesman, from The Secret Agent, Les Enfants Terribles, Dracula and other works, for the visuals by Frans Lanting) Symphony No.1 (1992) was the first of Philip Glass’ David Bowie symphonies. Based on Bowie’s 1977 album Low, it featured a full orchestra, yet remained true to Glass’s minimalist and postmodernist style. Next was Symphony No.4 (1996) based on one of Bowie’s most famous albums, Heroes . This symphony was made up of six movements, each cleverly derived from a theme from the album.Schaefer, John (September 4, 2012). "Top 10 Essential Philip Glass Recordings". Q2 Music. WQXR . Retrieved March 9, 2016. Glass’ enduringly popular score for The Truman Show, starring Jim Carrey, won Best Original Score at the Golden Globes in 1999 and appears third in PRS for Music’s Philip Glass’ Most Popular Film Scores chart, while his score for The Hours, the 2002 film starring Nicole Kidman, Meryl Streep, and Julianne Moore, won the Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music BAFTA in 2003, and appears at number six. This movement has its origins in the film score Koyaanisqatsi, but was ultimately not used in the film; it is often performed as a work in its own right (ISWC T-010.461.089-0). [7] Koyaanisqatsi: Life out of balance for chorus, ensemble and orchestra (1982, performance version 2009) Island" (2 flutes, 2 soprano saxophones, tenor saxophone, bass clarinet, 2 horns, viola, violoncello, synthesizer) 7:39

In the Penal Colony for voices and string quintet (2000, libretto after the short story by Franz Kafka) Vera, Liber (May 29, 2021). "Circus Days and Nights". British Theatre Guide . Retrieved November 6, 2021. There are two formulaically identical sections to the movement. Although rhythmically driven, the melodic implications of "Floe" occur somewhat coincidentally by orchestration. There is no modulation, but the harmonic progression simply repeats over and over again. The layering of contrasting timbres is characteristic of the piece as a whole. Floe borrows a theme from Jean Sibelius's fifth symphony. [9] In popular culture [ edit ] Suite from The Hours for piano, strings, harp and celeste (2002, arr. in 2003 by Michael Riesman of Glass's music for the film The Hours) A Brief History of Time (Errol Morris, 1991) (biopic based on Stephen Hawking's popular physics book)When your oeuvre is primarily composed of operas, it’s easy to regard a short chamber piece as your most accessible work. This is the mentality that Philip Glass brought to composing Glassworks, his first major success and, to many, his magnum opus. Glass was no stranger to music of any genre, growing up in a family of musicians and eventually studying at Juilliard, but until that point he was fairly limited to theatrical spaces. Spending his days in ’60s Paris with a group of musicians and theater actors was certainly an incredible and influential resource to him at the time, but there’s a ceiling to the success (and income) that come from such an insular artistic community, and Glass wanted to reach more people with his work. As he continued to compose scores and operas across the 1970s, this potential tilt toward something more commercial (relatively speaking) remained at the fore of his mind. There’s no denying that his work was modern, but to get an average audience to listen to a 3-hour historical opera would need more than his particular flourishes to widen his appeal. After the premiere of Satyagraha in 1980, and with pay coming in for his work on Koyaanisqatsi, Glass set out to create a piece that could be “listened to through a Walkman.” Glass, Philip (1987). Jones, Robert T. (ed.). Music by Philip Glass. New York: Harper & Row. ISBN 0-06-015823-9.

Company for string orchestra (1983; orchestral version of String Quartet No. 2 Company (1983), see String quartets) Waiting for the Barbarians for voices, chorus and orchestra (2005, after the novel by J. M. Coetzee)Koyaanisqatsi takes the top spot of the Most Popular Film Scores chart. Intrinsic to the 1982 American experimental non-narrative film produced and directed by Godfrey Reggio, Glass' score is noted as a prime example of the ‘minimalist’ school of composition. The score has become so popular in its own right that the Philip Glass Ensemble, comprising the principal performers of the music of Philip Glass, has toured the world performing the score live for concert hall audiences, in sync with film’s captivating visuals. White Raven (1991, premiered as O Corvo Branco in 1998, with Robert Wilson, libretto by Luísa Costa Gomes) Flute Concerto for flute and orchestra – transcription from Violin Concerto n. 1 (2017 arr. by James Strauss) ABC, which then merges with the next movement, "Floe" with the entrance of the horns. [8] The movement has been arranged for and performed by Gamelan Pacifica.