It’s no coincidence that composer Philip Glass and This American Life host Ira Glass have the same last name: They’re second cousins, but they didn’t know each other well when the Field Museum in the Chicago asked Ira to interview Philip on stage in 1999.
On today’s Fresh Air, we replay excerpts from that conversation in honor of Philip’s 75th birthday, which is Tuesday.
Philip Glass is one of the fathers of minimalist music. He started off writing for his ensemble and went on to write operas, dances and film scores, including the music for Koyaanisqatsi, Kundun, The Fog of War, No Reservations and The Thin Blue Line.
Huffduffed from http://www.npr.org/2012/01/31/146092923/ira-glass-interviews-his-cousin-composer-philip-glass