FOUNDATIONS: STEVE REICH
A pioneer of modern classical minimalism.
Friends.
It’s Friday, you know the score.
This week we’re reaching way back into the crates to bring you one of the masters of modern classical minimalism.
STEVE REICH
“I became a composer because I loved Stravinsky, because i loved Bach and because I loved bebop” Steve Reich
Steve Reich is one of defining American composers of the late 20th Century. Best known as a pioneer of minimal music in the mid to late 60s, he was one of the first composers to experiment with the emerging discipline of tape looping. Thereby laying the groundwork for digital sampling technologies that would have such a profound impact on hip-hop, acid house and techno in the 70s, 80s and right up to the present day.
Reich’s work is characterised by its use of repetition and phase shifting, where one or more repeated phrases play slower or faster than the others, creating new and evolving musical patterns across the span of a piece.
I’ve selected a handful of my favourite recordings for today, the ones I’ve gone back to again and again over the years. Although this will obviously do no justice at all to a career that has spanned an astonishing seven decades.
MUSIC FOR 18 MUSICIANS (1976)
A sonic murmuration, and probably Reich’s most famous composiiton.
I’ve selected the 1978 release on ECM, as this is the one I’ve been listening to personally for many years.
I once saw this performed live at the Southbank Centre and it was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. Having spent so much time over the years listening to electronic music, it’s easy to forget the incredible levels of skill, dedication and teamwork required to deliver a live performance like this.
In terms of place, it will always remind me of waking up one morning in the Standard Hotel, New York, and watching the sun rise over the rooftops of Manhattan. A glorious experience and a truly magical piece of music.
MUSIC FOR A LARGE ENSEMBLE (1980)
Occupying very similar sonic and stuctural territory to Music for 18 Musicians. Some of the brightest and most optimistic modern classical music you’ll come across.
DRUMMING (1971)
In June 1970, Reich travelled to the University of Ghana to study polyrhythmic music for five weeks with the Ewe master drummer Gideon Alorwoyie. From this experience, as well as A. M. Jones’s Studies in African Music about the music of the Ewe people, Reich drew inspiration for this extensive piece, which he started to compose shortly after his return.
Composed of four distinct parts, Reich introduces us consecutively to the bongo, marimba and glockenspeil, before bringing all three instruments together for a triumphant finale.
Enjoy this vinyl rip from the original 1972 release of Steve Reich's Drumming, produced by John Gibson and Multiples Inc. in a limited edition of 500. The recording is from the last in a series of four premiere performances of Drumming at various New York locations in late 1971.
DIFFERENT TRAINS (1988)
A later piece with incredible emotional depth and richness of tone that uses carefully chosen speech recordings for much of its raw musical material, expertly combined with a range of different string instruments.
THE DESERT MUSIC (1985)
Finally, what is often described as Reich’s Magnum Opus. An epic orchestral masterpiece that places him at the pinnacle of contemporary classical composition.
Until the next one.
Peace and love.
Rubin