Philip Glass - Symphony No. 7 "Toltec"

From Philip Glass's notes:

"The word "Toltec" in the title of the Symphony No. 7 refers to the tradition and beliefs which were the cultural and spiritual matrix of Mesoamerica and which began many centuries before the European invasion. Mesoamerica is now believed to have extended from central Mexico to the north as far as New Mexico and Texas in the United States, and to the south to include Guatemala and Nicaragua.

Though its roots began, according to recent research, some five thousand years ago among the Olmec, and achieved its peak in the times of Teotihuacan (500 BC to 500 AD), the traditional belief was that the Toltec culture reached its height in the city of Tula and dominated that part of the world from 700 AD to 1100 AD. The Post-Classic Mayan and Aztec periods that followed maintained the Toltec accomplishments in mathematics, precision in making calendars, building and architecture.

Equally important were the Toltec developments in social organization and personal spiritual development. Like many indigenous traditions, the Toltecs emphasized the relationship with the forces of the natural world (the sun, earth, water, fire and wind) in developing their own wisdom traditions. These kinds of practices can still be found among some of the indigenous peoples of Mexico today, e.g. the Wirrarika from North Mexico.

This Symphony is inspired by the Wirrarika sacred trinity, as indicated in the respective movement headings: The Corn, The Hikuri (The Sacred Root), and The Blue Deer.

The Corn represents a direct link between Mother Earth and the well-being of human beings. But it also represents the responsibility of the people to nurture the gifts of Mother Earth-the corn which will sustain them.

The Sacred Root is found in the high deserts of north and central Mexico, and is understood to be the doorway to the world of the Spirit.

The Blue Deer is considered the holder of the Book of Knowledge. Any man or woman who aspires to be a "Person of Knowledge" will, through arduous training and effort, have to encounter the Blue Deer. The Blue Deer might be seen as a literal blue deer or something more abstract-for example, a vision, a voice that one might hear, or a thought uninvited but present in the mind of the practitioner."

This is a wonderful thing.

Toltec