Steve Reich: Phases (A Nonesuch Retrospective)

When the history book is written on the minimalist scene that emerged in the 1960s, it’s likely that composer Steve Reich will emerge as the most influential figure. Certainly artists including Philip Glass and Terry Riley have made extremely significant contributions to contemporary classical music and have evolved, like Reich, beyond the inherent constraints of the genre. But Reich’s influence can be felt in music by artists as diverse as German bassist Eberhard Weber, guitar legend Pat Metheny and British progressive rock groups Soft Machine and Gentle Giant. Even Mike Oldfield’s classic Tubular Bells had considerable precedent in Reich’s work.

The box set manages to include almost all of Reich’s best-known and influential work. “Drumming” (1971) relies heavily on, no surprise, percussion instruments (tuned and untuned) to evolve its 56-minute, four-movement form. Reich’s interest in utilizing lyrical fragments in repeated form to act as the foundation for long-form composition is well-represented on the 1994 version of “Tehillim” (1981) and the more advanced “You Are (Variations).” What’s not necessarily evident when listening to these vocal pieces, as well as “Different Trains” (1988), which features the Kronos Quartet and recordings of voices from before, during and after World War II, is the amount of effort required of Reich to find just the right phrases that would not only work from a rhythmical perspective, but in their actual meaning as well. “You Are (Variations)” works best, with the music integrating perfectly with the phrases that make up the four movements (two in English and two in Hebrew): “You are whatever your thoughts are”; “I place the Eternal before me”; “Explanations come to an end somewhere”; and, perhaps the most revealing movement, “Say little and do much.”


Steve Reich
Phases: A Nonesuch Retrospective
Nonesuch 79962-25
Released 2006

Disc 1.
Music for 18 musicians
Disc 2.
Different trains
Tehillim Eight lines
Disc 3.
You are (variations)
New York counterpointCello counterpoint
Electric counterpoint
Triple quartet
Disc 4.
Come out
Proverb
Desert music
Disc 5.
Music for mallet instruments, voices, and organ
Drumming.
Track List
Disc One
Music for 18 Musicians (1976) 67:42
for 4 female voices & 16 instruments
Conductor - Ensemble: Reich, Steve - Steve Reich Ensemble
Performers: Armstrong, Rebecca - Soprano ; Beckenstein, Marion - Soprano ; Becker, Bob - Percussion ; Bensman, Cheryl - Soprano ; Bush, Phillip - Percussion ; Bush, Phillip - Piano ; Clayton, Jay - Alto ; Clayton, Jay - Piano ; Ferchen, Timothy - Percussion ; Hartenberger, Russ - Percussion ; Kvistad, Garry - Percussion ; Kvistad, Garry - Piano ; LeBlanc, Jeanne - Cello ; Lim, Elizabeth - Violin ; Niemann, Edmund - Piano ; Preiss, James - Piano ; Preiss, James - Vibraphone ; Reich, Steve - Marimba ; Reich, Steve - Piano ; Scott, Les - Clarinet ; Tilles, Nurit - Piano ; Wheeler, Thad - Percussion ; Ziporyn, Evan - Clarinet

Disc Two
Different Trains (1988) 26:51
for double string quartet & tape
Performers: Dutt, Hank - Viola ; Harrington, David - Violin ; Jeanrenaud, Joan - Cello ; Sherba, John - Violin
Tehillim (revision of "Octet") (1981) 30:29
for sopranos, alto, winds, strings, percussion & keyboards
Conductor - Ensemble: Leeuw, Reinbert de - Schoenberg Ensemble , The Hague Percussion Group
Performers: Benschop, Yvonne - Mezzo Soprano ; Borden, Barbara - Soprano ; Goud, Ananda - Mezzo Soprano ; Willemstijn, Tannie - Soprano
Eight Lines (1979) 17:29
for chamber orchestra
Conductor - Ensemble: Lubman, Bradley - Bang on a Can
Performers: Carrasco, Jacqueline - Violin ; Fedele, David - Flute ; Fedele, David - Piccolo ; Kitzis, Gregor - Violin ; Knowles, Liz - Violin ; Lawrence, Ron - Viola ; Lowenstern, Michael - Bass Clarinet ; Lowenstern, Michael - Clarinet ; Monson, Patti - Flute ; Monson, Patti - Piccolo ; Mooke, Martha - Viola ; Niemann, Edmund - Piano ; Passelink, Greg - Cello ; Reynolds, Todd - Violin ; Stewart, Mark - Cello ; Tilles, Nurit - Piano ; Ziporyn, Evan - Bass Clarinet ; Ziporyn, Evan - Clarinet

Disc Three
You Are (Variations) (2004) 27:00
for chorus & ensemble
Conductor - Ensemble: Gershon, Grant - Los Angeles Master Chorale
New York Counterpoint (1985) 11:19
for clarinet, bass clarinet & tape
Performers: Ziporyn, Evan - Bass Clarinet ; Ziporyn, Evan - Clarinet
This work is scored for nine B-flat clarinets and three bass clarinets pre-recorded separately by one performer then sampled onto a tape
Cello Counterpoint (2003) 11:36
for cello & pre-recorded tape (or 8 cellos)
Performers: Beiser, Maya - Cello
Cello Counterpoint is scored for one live cello accompanied by a tape of seven previously recorded cello tracks. Maya Beiser plays all eight of the cello tracks heard on this recording. Kilgore Sound & Recording, New York, NY (09/29/2003 - 09/30/2003)
Electric Counterpoint (1987) 14:43
for electric guitar, bass guitar & tape
Performers: Metheny, Pat - Electric Double Bass ; Metheny, Pat - Electric Guitar
This work is scored for ten electric guitars and two electric bass guitars pre-recorded separately by one performer and sampled onto a tape. An eleventh guitar part is played live against the tape.
Triple Quartet (1999) 14:42
for 3 string quartets
Performers: Culp, Jennifer - Cello ; Dutt, Hank - Viola ; Harrington, David - Violin ; Sherba, John - Violin
This is a work for string quartet and tape. Skywalker Sound, Nicasio, California (1999 - 2000)

Disc Four
Come Out (1966) 12:59
for tape
Proverb (1995) 14:11
for 3 sopranos, 2 tenors, 2 vibes & 2 organs
The Desert Music (1984) 48:00
chamber version
Conductor - Ensemble: Thomas, Michael Tilson - Brooklyn Philharmonic Chorus , Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra members , Steve Reich and Musicians
Text by William Carlos Williams

Disc Five
Music for Mallet Instruments(1973) 16:58
for Voices and Organ, 3 female voices, 3 marimbas, 3 glockenspiels, vibes & organ
Performers: Steve Reich and Steve Reich and Musicians
Drumming (1971) 56:42
for 2 female voices, piccolo, 4 pairs of bongos, 3 marimbas & 3 glockenspiels
Conductor - Ensemble: Reich, Steve - Steve Reich and Musicians
Performers: Becker, Bob - Percussion ; Clayton, Jay - Alto ; Harms, Ben - Percussion ; Hartenberger, Russ - Percussion ; Kvistad, Garry - Percussion ; Preiss, James - Percussion ; Reich, Steve - Percussion ; Reich, Steve - Whistling ; Schall, Gary - Percussion ; Silver, Mort - Piccolo ; Velez, Glen - Percussion ; Wheeler, Thad - Percussion ; Wood Ambush, Pamela - Voice