There’s a stillness that pulses beneath repetition. A tension that builds in simplicity. In Étude No. 2, Philip Glass offers a space where restraint becomes poetry, and French pianist Vanessa Wagner enters it with luminous clarity, shaping each phrase with intimacy and breath. Known for her virtuosity and unmistakable elegance, Wagner brings rare refinement to everything she touches. A graduate of the Paris Conservatoire and winner of the Victoire de la Musique award, she has long drawn admiration for her ability to merge deep musical intelligence with expressive subtlety. “With age and experience, I’ve freed myself from certain norms, and for the past ten years or so, I’ve dared much more to simply be – who I am,” she reflects. Whether interpreting the classical repertoire or championing contemporary works, her playing is marked by emotional depth and precision – an artistry grounded in both intellect and intuition.
Now, just weeks after announcing her upcoming release Philip Glass: The Complete Piano Etudes – out October 10, 2025 on InFiné – Vanessa Wagner shares a new single: a freshly reimagined recording of Étude No. 2. Previously released on her 2021 album Mirrored, this new version offers deeper stillness, greater tension, and a more fully inhabited emotional landscape. The single arrives alongside a new video by visual artist Laurent Pernot. Composed of ghostlike fragments from amateur films, it mirrors the music’s ephemeral beauty – scenes of everyday life that flicker and dissolve like memory. “These Etudes are a long journey, full of vibrating colors – they’re an unsettled space where images, memories, and sensations coexist,” Wagner explains. It’s a quiet meditation on time, intimacy, and what connects us across generations.
Below, Vanessa Wagner reflects on Glass’s influence, the act of revisiting this piece, and the inner journey behind one of her most expansive projects to date.
photography by Laura Bonnefous
What draws you to the projects you decide to explore?
From a very young age, I felt slightly out of sync with the “academic” way of being a classical musician. I followed the typical path – graduating from the Conservatoire Supérieur, winning a Victoire de la Musique award, and recording the classical canon. My discography paints a fairly accurate picture of the projects I’ve pursued. With age and experience, I’ve freed myself from certain norms, and for the past ten years or so, I’ve dared much more to simply be – who I am. My projects and career are shaped by an inner and artistic journey – I’d even say, a necessity.
What made you want to interpret and record the full set of Philip Glass’ Etudes? And did anything new reveal itself during the process?
I started playing Glass’ music about ten years ago, first with electronic producer Murcof on our album Statea, and then solo in my later recordings. In concert, audiences experience this music with incredible intensity and emotion. The full cycle of 20 Etudes takes on a deeper and more complete meaning when performed in its entirety. You really feel the stylistic radicalism, the relationship to time, and the variety of colours and emotions running through what is often described as “minimalist” music. It’s also a cornerstone of the 20th/21st-century repertoire, and I wanted to present it as such to European audiences, since Glass’s music is still too often seen as anecdotal by some.
“With age and experience, I’ve freed myself from certain norms, and for the past ten years or so, I’ve dared much more to simply be – who I am.”
You’ve revisited “Étude No. 2” for this new complete recording of Glass’s Etudes, after already interpreting it on your album Mirrored. What drew you >back to this piece, and what did you want to express differently this time around?
It’s the first time I’ve re-recorded pieces in my discography. Glass’s music offers the space to play it with very different timings or intentions depending on the performer or their mood. I approached this new version with more rigour, and I believe, more depth.
You have described the first volume of Glass’s Etudes as offering a “space of freedom” for the performer. Can you elaborate on what you mean by that?
Glass gives very few instructions in his scores. Just a few days ago, I took part in a full performance of the Etudes by ten pianists at the Philharmonie in Berlin and Hamburg. We came from very diverse backgrounds – jazz pianists, composers, neoclassical players, and more traditional classical pianists. It is Glass himself who wishes his music to be appropriated by different profiles, and I find that says a lot about who he is and what he wants to convey to the performer.
Laurent Pernot created the visuals for the music video of “Étude No. 2.” What was it like to see his imagery come to life alongside your recording?
These Etudes are a long journey, full of vibrating colors – they’re an unsettled space where images, memories, and sensations coexist. Glass himself has worked extensively with film and visual artists, so it felt natural for me—someone who deeply loves contemporary art and cinema – to ask an artist to create a film for this music.
“These Etudes are a long journey, full of vibrating colors – they’re an unsettled space where images, memories, and sensations coexist.”
You’ve worked with Laurent Pernot on several projects. What is it about his imagery that fits so well with your music?
His sense of softness and nostalgia. Saying without saying, brushing against things, touching gently.
When you spend that much time with one composer’s voice, in this case Philip Glass, what kind of impact does it leave on yours?
As a performer, I’d say that minimalist music as a whole has profoundly transformed my life. Glass’s music is hypnotic and addictive – at this point, I can’t live without it.
“I hope listeners find a place where they can escape – into their memories, their inner journeys – and experience a different relationship to time.”
What do you hope listeners take away from your version of Glass’ Etudes?
I hope listeners feel they’re entering a space of boundless expression and emotion, one that reaches every depth. A place where they can escape – into their memories, their inner journeys – and experience a different relationship to time. This music is often played in a “repetitive” way, which it undeniably is, but I believe I’ve delivered a version deeply rooted in my practice of impressionist music. Glass may have invented a new musical language, but it’s also firmly anchored in the broader history of music to which he belongs.
What can audiences look forward to in your upcoming live performances?
Live performance is irreplaceable – it’s the space of all possibilities. I’m incredibly eager to present this full cycle to a live audience and to experience this journey by sharing it on stage.
You can listen to the full release here:
open.spotify.com
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