“It can’t be said that Steve Reich doesn’t know how to throw himself a birthday party,” writes Andy Beta in Monday’s (10/31) Wall Street Journal (subscription required). “The pioneering modernist composer has stayed remarkably busy in celebration of turning 80…. Upward of 400 performances of his work will be presented in more than 20 countries…. On Tuesday night, the native New Yorker kicks off his tenure as Carnegie Hall’s composer-in-residence with the world premiere of his composition ‘Pulse,’ and a special performance of ‘Three Tales,’ the 2003 multimedia opera he made with his wife, video artist Beryl Korot.” Among other Reich works, Beta discusses “his 1976 opus ‘Music for 18 Musicians,’ based on a cycle of just 11 chords and still hailed as a crowning achievement of modern classical minimalism…. ‘I feel like Steve took the simple idea of pulsation and crawled inside it to explore it fully,’ said Jeremy Geffen, director of artistic planning at Carnegie Hall…. Last week … the International Contemporary Ensemble was rehearsing ‘Pulse’ for the Tuesday premiere…. ‘I can’t think of another one of Steve’s pieces where you become so aware of his delicate melodies,’ the group’s pianist, Jacob Greenberg, said.” Reich turned 80 on October 3.
Posted November 1, 2016
