Videos

"The Eremite's Desire"

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An 'eremite' is a religious recluse—from the Greek words eremia (desert) & eremos (solitary). In a broader sense, it is not necessary for an eremite to physically leave society—an 'eremite' is someone who goes against the grain of society to follow their own spiritual star, such as Gandhi, Martin Luther King and Mother Theresa. It takes a certain fierce determination to be an eremite...

The Last Transit of Venus

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Here’s a new piece, celebrating the Last Transit of Venus in our lifetimes. (The next one will be in 2117). It’s for glass armonica and orchestra.

Interesting to note is that the Glass Armonica was invented by Benjamin Franklin in 1761 which was also a year of a Transit of Venus!

William on the History Channel

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'Franklin Tech' on Modern Marvels (The History Channel)

First aired 6/2006. This is the segment in which William is interviewed.

The entire program can be ordered from The History Channel here.

NOTE: The narrator in this segment gives the impression that the glasses on William's instrument were made at Cal-Glass. That is not the case: they were made by Gerhard Finkenbeiner in 1995. Gerhard, alas, is no longer with us.

Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy

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Tchaikowsky's "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy" from the Nutcracker (1892). Originally composed for celesta (a keyboard bell-like instrument), William Zeitler plays it on the glass armonica.

Hong Kong in the Spring

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William Zeitler sails to Hong Kong, playing his glass armonica, and is joined by an erhu player. This is an expanded version of "Hint of Spring" from Midwinter Phantasy.

Venus

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William Zeitler plays 'Venus - the Sphere of Love' from Music of the Spheres on the Glass Armonica in Hong Kong.

Lullaby

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A piano piece describing a mother's 'white hot' love for her child. This piece can be found on William Zeitler's album A World With No Tears.