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10 songs that feel like Music in Twelve Parts

Matched to Music in Twelve Parts by Philip Glass on how the music actually moves — intensity, dynamic swing, texture, tempo — not by genre tag. Here's what makes each one a match.

Music in Twelve Parts
The song you love
Music in Twelve Parts
Philip Glass
moderate 45/100 intensity 80 BPM
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Music for 18 Musicians — Steve Reich moderate 72 BPM

A 80% feel-match — carries the same meditative pull and sits a little calmer at 34/100. Nearly the same tempo, too (72 BPM).

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Mysterons — Portishead intense 80 BPM

90% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it runs a little hotter at 60/100. Same layered texture.

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Emotion — Daft Punk moderate 98 BPM

Keeps the same spacious pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (45/100). Measured 88% alike.

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Measures 90% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (47/100). Same layered texture.

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Shanty — Slowdive intense 95 BPM

A 87% feel-match — carries the same spacious pull and runs a little hotter at 60/100.

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Bassackwards — Kurt Vile moderate 70 BPM

88% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it sits a little calmer at 33/100. Same layered texture.

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What's in Your Head — Disclosure moderate 110 BPM

Keeps the same spacious pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (40/100). Measured 88% alike.

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New Year's Prayer — Jeff Buckley moderate 72 BPM

Measures 91% the same. It sits a little calmer at 37/100. Same layered texture.

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Cypress — Tycho safe 95 BPM

A 84% feel-match — carries the same spacious pull and sits a little calmer at 37/100.

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The Birth and Death of the Day — Explosions in the Sky moderate 85 BPM

84% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (40/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Music in Twelve Parts is more than you want right now.

Islands by Philip Glass
Islands — Philip Glass safe 72 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 6. Intensity 13/100, down from 45. Nearly the same tempo, too.

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Neroli — Brian Eno safe

Its dynamic range stays a gentler 2 where the original climbs to 6, so it lands at 8/100 — the pull without the edge.

The Big Ship by Brian Eno
The Big Ship — Brian Eno safe 60 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while its dynamic range stays a gentler 3 where the original climbs to 6. Reads 8/100.

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Cosmogony — Björk safe 60 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 6. 14/100, versus the original's 45.

Horizon by Tycho
Horizon — Tycho safe 90 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 6. Intensity 20/100, down from 45. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Cypress by Tycho
Cypress — Tycho safe 95 BPM

It stays in our safe band start to finish, so it lands at 37/100 — the pull without the edge.

Sumiregusa (Wild Violet) by Enya
Sumiregusa (Wild Violet) — Enya safe 72 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while its dynamic range stays a gentler 3 where the original climbs to 6. Reads 11/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Dark Sky Island by Enya
Dark Sky Island — Enya safe 72 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 6. 20/100, versus the original's 45. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Music in Twelve Parts” by Philip Glass?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “Music for 18 Musicians” by Steve Reich, “Mysterons” by Portishead, “Emotion” by Daft Punk — the top match scores 80% alike. Matching is by how the songs actually move (intensity, dynamic range, texture, tempo, predictability, vocal force), not by genre tag or popularity.

What songs are like “Music in Twelve Parts” but calmer?

“Islands” by Philip Glass, “Neroli” by Brian Eno, “The Big Ship” by Brian Eno keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Music in Twelve Parts”?

It measures 45/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 6/10, layered texture, moderate sudden shifts, and soft vocals. Tempo is 80 BPM.

How do you decide which songs are similar?

Every song in our catalog is measured on 8 dimensions — intensity, dynamic range, tempo, sudden changes, texture, predictability, vocal force and fine sound detail. Similarity is the distance between two songs across those measurements, so matches cross genres and eras. Shared mood tags break ties.

By the numbers: how this song compares

Computed from this song’s place among the 19,209 songs we’ve measured.

Where it sits in 19,000 songs

On our 19k-song scale this lands in the middle band — more energetic than 42% of songs, calmer than the other 58%. Its intensity reading of 45/100 comes from a dynamic range of 6/10, layered texture, moderate shifts, and soft vocals. It shares this stretch of the spectrum with thousands of other tracks, so the finer fingerprint below is what really separates it.

What makes it unusual

What stands out most about this song is a slow, unhurried pace: more extreme on that axis than 85% of everything we've measured. At the far opposite end of the library sit the songs built on full chaos — sudden changes, huge quiet-to-loud swings, and relentless energy — the kind of track this one is the counterpoint to.

Feels almost identical to

Closest matches by feel across all 19,209 measured songs — not by genre or artist, by how they actually move.

Dial the feeling up or down

What it’s good for

Sleep2/10
Focus6/10
Workout3/10
Dinner8/10
Party / hype3/10

Scored from this song’s tempo, intensity, dynamics and texture — not crowd votes.

1974 in context

The 176 songs we’ve measured from 1974 average a dynamic range of 6.4/10. At 6/10, this track is right in line with its year.

Mixes smoothly with

Within a few BPM and close in feel — they flow without a jarring transition.

The fingerprint

Intensity45
Dynamics56
Tempo22
Surprise50
Density33
Predictability50
Vocal force25
Trigger load50

The 8-dimension measurement behind every rating on this page.

Want the single closest match, with every dimension compared?

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