I’ve been writing about Steve Reich, who turend 90 on Saturday, pretty much from the beginning of this website back in 2007. From birthday celebrations at 70 and 80, to a multi-concert tribute at Barcelona’s Sonar Festival, there isn’t an electronic or contemporary classical musician alive who doesn’t owe their career to Reich’s innovations. As Alex Ross succinctly put it: “Reich changed music, and he also changed how music relates to society.”
If Steve’s music has fallen slightly out of the spotlight over the past few years, the composer himself remains undiminished, still writing and still as hyperactive in conversation as ever. Oddly, there were no NYC events featuring his music this past weekend, but several of note are coming up over the next few weeks:
- Wednesday 10/7: Trinity Wall Street hosts two different concerts featuring the Trinity Choir and NOVUS along with Sandbox Percussion: a lunchtime program pairing Reich’s Jacob’s Ladder with works by Andy Akiho, Dorothy Rudd Moore, David Lang and Jessie Montgomery, followed by an evening concert of choral works, including Tehillim, Proverb, Traveler’s Prayer, and Jacob’s Ladder. Both events are free, registration recommended.
- Wed 10/14 – Sat 10/18: The Park Avenue Armory is presenting five performances of Steve’s signature work Music for 18 Musicians (1976) in an extended presnentation featuring three generations of musicians: the original Steve Reich Ensemble, the Grammy-winning new-music ensemble Alarm Will Sound, and students from the Manhattan School of Music. Set in the Wade Thompson Drill Hall, the musicians will encircle the audience, with a connective interlude by composer Caroline Shaw that’s inspired by Steve’s music.
- Thursday 10/22: Carnegie Hall presents a major celebration of Steve’s music, featuring many of the composer’s top collaborators. Guitarist-composer Bryce Dessner (The National) performs Electric Counterpoint while Lisa Kaplan and Nico Muhly perform the US premiere of Reich’s Two Pianos (2020). Brad Lubman conducts the combined forces of the Bang on a Can All-Stars and Ensemble Signal in Reich’s Pulitzer Prize–winning Double Sextet, Jacob’s Ladder, and the US premiere of In All Your Ways, premiered just a few weeks ago at the Edinbugh Festival.