POX: Steve Reich

It's like an extrapolated version of that beautiful second movement of WTC 9-11

By which I mean third movement, duh

Gorgeous gorgeous gorgeous

Huh, had no idea this was in the works:

https://www.nonesuch.com/journal/steve-reich-release-conversations-book-harpercollins-hanover-square-press-march-8-2022-2021-10-01

it's 'music for 18 musicians' season tbh

always in season imo

yay

I actually played Double Sextet/2×5 on my way to work this morning bc I have a seasonal association with that album.

https://x.com/jmcunning/status/775692655795634176?s=20

i've been listening to music for 18 musicians for years (the grand valley state university new music ensemble recording), and i have NOT checked out any other steve reich pieces. in mf18m, i love the soft and human quality of the propulsion, the surreal quality of hearing what a computer could play very 'well' instead being played by 'imperfect' but beautifully alive human touch, the slow rise and fall and drift of the motifs, which are gorgeous, and just the very time-stopping, mood-capturing magnetism of the whole thing. what steve reich recordings should i look for next?

Hmm. There's a lot of good phase work he did (Drumming, Clapping, Four Organs, Phase Patterns, etc.) that are similar or related, though not always as transformative/transportative. I know it's not what you asked for, but if you haven't heard it maybe give Philip Glass's "Music With Changing Parts" a shot, it's pretty similar.

There's a lot of good phase work he did (Drumming, Clapping, Four Organs, Phase Patterns, etc.) that are similar or related, though not always as transformative/transportative.

yeah, those pieces are more lulling or even nullifying, but i actually like that more a lot of the time

It's nearly all worth your time imho, but I'm especially fond of - Double Sextet, Three Movements, Music For A Large Ensemble, and Drumming.

Taking Josh's lead, give Glass' Music in Twelve Parts a try too.

i'll give these a try. i was just thinking 'maybe i should check out philip glass' so that's perfect. thanks all.

Other recordings of the same piece can be illuminating too. The ECM version of mf18m (feels like a reddit thread) is generally considered definitive (the Nonesuch remake not so good). The Colin Currie Ensemble and Ensemble Signal, younger groups mentored by Reich, have done this and the CCE have also done Drumming, another trance like one. I would try mybe the original Deutsche Grammophone Drumming for a similar thing to what you get from m418m.

Phase Patterns is the one that was a couple rungs below damn near life changing for me, I like almost everything I’ve heard by him but it all ends up paling in comparison just because that was such a mind shattering event hearing it for the first time. If you’ve heard anything else by him it probably wouldn’t have the same impact though.

Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices and Organ & Music for a Large Ensemble were written around the same time and share a lot of the same vibe as Music for 18 musicians

"Octet / Music For A Large Ensemble / Violin Phase" on ECM is up there with M418M for me.

another vote for Drumming

yeah Drumming is 'the one' for me also

Besides MF18M, the albums I return to are Different Trains/Electric Counterpoint (the latter is the one that the Orb's "Little Fluffy Clouds" samples) and Double Sextet/2x5.

‘eight lines’ is gorgeous

Some of his pieces have a musical documentary feel about them, most of these feature a clever device in which he transcribes short clips of speech into notes to be tracked alongside with an instrument, cello, or violin usually.

You realise how much music is embedded in our everyday speech patterns, Different Trains and the startling WTC 9/11 are great examples of that method.

I would like to recommend Tehillim, I feel it's where you can hear his 'human' touch the most; it's also available as the full ECM Recordings boxset with Mf18M, Octet, Violin Phase & MfLE.

Oh Tehillim is one of my favorite pieces of music of all time, it can drive me to tears. But I think Map was looking for the more long-form trancelike world of Reich.

Anyhoo, Steve Reich is the guest of honor at this year’s Long Play Festival in Brooklyn, put on by the Bang on a Can organization. Among other works, including M418M, the Mivos Quartet will do his complete works for string quartet, including Different Trains.

Oh and Drumming will be performs too. I’ve never seen that one performed live. (I saw a local new music group in DC perform M418M several years ago).

A great in-depth interview with @SteveReich in @FT @FinancialTimes today, in which the composer talks about his early life, obsession with Stravinsky, and recent inspirations.
Read here: https://t.co/GX2l9XcYTO pic.twitter.com/4zD8Gjc1qg

— Steve Reich (@SteveReich) February 2, 2024

"There is brunch-friendly soft rock music being piped in, and on the pre­vi­ous even­ing the mall hos­ted a live per­form­ance by an Eagles cover band. But Reich, dressed in dark tones and wear­ing his sig­na­ture dark base­ball cap, has come for the waffles, not the music."

It would be funny if he refused to talk about anything but waffles

Glad the article clarified that point, would have definitely expected him to be the type of guy who goes out to breakfast for the soft rock soundtrack and the lore of yesterday’s Eagles cover band

“What do I want? I want life, I want the music to be played, I want the music to be listened to. I want to know people have felt things,” he says. “I’m very grateful that my music has been listened to and appreciated. It’s a great source of happiness.”

Damn I guess success does bring happiness, get stuffed 'making art should be its own reward' people.