Complete recording by the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Edo De Waart in 1983 of the Steve Reich masterpiece. Available on the Philips label.
First time I heard this it was around about 1992 and I was driving on the M62 (the highest motorway in England and notorious for perilous driving conditions!) over Saddleworth (it's highest point) and the weather was absolutely atrocious: heavy rain and high crosswinds) then all of a sudden the dark sky cracked and the sun shone so brightly over the moors producing a rainbow in the distance. This piece was the perfect accompaniment to the sun breaking through the storm clouds and it makes me think about that journey every time I hear it. I've been a fan of Reich's music ever since. Simply beautiful.
@@reach4thesports897 On the occasion described it was actually on cassette in my friend's Citröen CX Pallas - it was a very long time ago! To answer your question fully, this kind of stuff does get played on the radio quite often over here on BBC Radio 3. Often thought of as an anachronism these days, Radio 3 is a lot more avant garde than most people think, especially towards the late evening and its through the night programming. It's worth checking out if you can stream it in your part of the world - as I say, the more esoteric stuff like this tends to get played at night.
@@seeling_liebe Indeed he does... but Arvo Pärt comes even closer for me (ruclips.net/video/sp2oxWdRMuk/видео.html). Both him and Reich have a way to connect to my emotions directly and elevate me like few musicians/composers do in minimalism or other genres. But I agree with Paul that Reich transcends everyone else in minimalism.
@@thomasanderson6879 I agree with you 100%. In the end it may be about specific pieces by Reich or Adams. Some tracks on Philip Glass's "1000 Airplanes on the Roof" are wonderful listening. Maybe the one called "Labyrinth" and the two that follow it. But I can O-D on Glass fairly quickly. In the past year I discovered Salonen's orchestral compositions.
@@rr7firefly I'll have a listen to some of Salonen's works. Thanks for the tip. Yes, both Glass and Reich write music that can be wonderful and in the case of Glass often cathartic, but like you I can quickly tire of them. I've been listening to some of Adams' pieces for over twenty years and they still sound fresh and inspiring (Harmonielehre, Common Tones in Simple Time and Fearful Symmetries are personal favourites). The Big Three have all carved out their own musical niches and complement each other very well.
I love it so much! Listening to this makes me grateful for beling alive, just to experiencing this. Amazing Steve.. who gave us so much through his music!
Without a doubt and by far my favorite piece by Reich. It generates a certain interior calmness as if I have turned away and isolated myself from a frantic world. I feel I am just observing the world, not participating, but disconnecting and giving my soul a moment to itself. I regret I only have one like to give. Dislikes are obviously those without a clue.
I feel the same way about it. My favorite by far from him although I have a soft spot for Music for a Large Ensemble and Octet as these are the first two pieces of his I heard. But this one moves and elevates me like few pieces of music in any genres can.
What I love about this piece (and other minimalist works as well) is that it reverses roles, where the chords change while the ostinato remains (relatively) constant, subverting their roles in the "motion across a background" idea. I try to do this with my own electronic music, and when it works, it's spine-tingling.
Came for the brutalism, stayed for the minimalism The cover photo is apparently the Q-Park “Beehive” parking garage in Rotterdam in case anyone else was wondering. It’s a shame that so many cool buildings are filled with cars
Heard this for the very first time ...caught this on NPR Knoxville yesterday.... absolutely breathtaking... became the definition of distracted driving... had to pull over to enjoy... sublime. Thank you for posting and leading me to a new undiscovered place!!... I need to investigate more of this composer's catalog.
Legitimately couldn't keep a smile off my face listening to this. There is a childlike curiosity here, as if the melody is experiencing, and discovering itself. Carefully, tenderly, but all the while exulting with its own path. Brings me to tears
_"'Variations for Winds, Strings and Keyboards' (1979) introduces new harmonic, formal and timbre material into my music. The constant yet slow harmonic change (there are no repeat markings in this score), the slow recurrence of materials form variation to variation, and the scoring for oboes, flutes, full brass, strings, acoustic and electric keyboards, all give this piece a sound quite different from my earlier music._ _These variations are on a harmonic progression somewhat in the manner of chaconne, but with a considerably longer harmonic progression than the four or eight bar progressions customarily found in the chaconne. The progression begins in C minor (or C dorian) and works its way via several keys into C-flat, enharmonically to B, and then, by gradually dropping sharps or adding flats, moves slowly back to C minor (or C dorian). These are three variations on the complete cycle lasting approximately six, ten and nine minutes each. The harmonic progression is followed in the middle register so that from time to time the bass may vary from variation to variation. The rhythm of the melodic patterns in the winds remains more or less constant throughout each variation, while the notes slowly, yet constantly, change to match the changing harmony. In the first variation the rhythmic pattern for the winds is two bars long, changing meters back and forth between 6/4 and 5/4. The second variation begins as two bars of alternating 5/4 and 6/4 and, after about a minute, changes into two bars of 8/4, each divided into five plus three. The final variation pattern is four bars long, changing meters 4/4, 6/4, 4/4 and 3/4 Since the first variation uses only quarter and eighth notes, while the second and third introduce an increasing amount of sixteenths, the effect is one of becoming more and florid and melismatic._ _At all times throughout the piece there are at least two wind instruments playing the melodic pattern in harmony with each other, while a third plays in cannon with the upper voice. The winds, three oboes doubled by electric organs, or three flutes doubled by two pianos and electric organs, play the melodic material throughout, while the slowly changing harmonies are played by the strings also doubled by electric organs. During the first and last variation a full brass section of three trumpets, three trombones and tuba gradually fade in and out, to complete the harmony of the middle register strings and organs."_ -Steve Reich
My favourite Reich piece and for me the height of this style of minimalism...the gradually shifting complexities and the lightness of spirit...wonderful and hypnotic.
In a 2006 interview Steve said he wasn't that happy with the piece. I think we all agree he was wrong. This is his first orchestral piece and may be his best. The more I listen to it the more I like it. When the massive bass line moves from scale step 5 to 4 I am reminded of great moments in Wagner when the dominant resolves to the subdominant.
@@larkstonguesinaspic4814 i think a lot of artists are not that happy with their work, because there is the feeling like they could do more. But it's not there the problem
You may have heard of Philip Glass - but Steve Reich is the master. Love his use of synths. Other great composers like Max Richter following suit now. But Steve will always take you to unexplored places in YOUR OWN MIND.
totally agree Phillip Glass never has grabbed me the way S Reich has~I am a prof musician (pianist) piece Six pianos first heard it ca 1982-83 when I was in grad school, big comp/theory dept there, just GRABBED me then!
Sounds like if the weight of the whole planet Earth was above you, but as a paper sphere... and suddenly, it swinged towards your right and then you could carry it using the point of your finger, like a chinese light boat floating gently, sending rays of colorful light across the space, in perfect silence... and at the same time, an impish noise started to grow in your body, warm as a lit fireplace in winter. If only I could paint what my imagination is creating thanks to this wonderful music...
The sence of completeness that I get from this repeated listening for 20 years ....I feel whole after I immerse myself in this simply peerless composition
Back in college, i used to sleep at my girlfriend's place and, since she had to go to work early in the morning, we used to walk to the bus station when the city was still dark and asleep: cars, traffic and bystanders just starting to crowd the streets. Once she hopped on the bus, i would walk back home listening to this and other Reich's works. 6 years later, those brasses give me the chills, and deep, strong memories (including the cold morning breeze, the scent of her hair) run through my head. What a piece.
What I truly love about this composition is that Reich doesn't rely on a battery of percussion instruments to give the "colour" to the work, as so many modern day composers do.
I thought this was his masterpiece for a long time. Love it. Then I introduced myself to Music for 18 Musicians, and life never was the same . . . Cheers!
I'm only in my late twenties. Not another person or thing in sight sometimes. Enlightening myself with tons of real history the world has no idea of daily-- such as this. Art and this musical language the whole world speaks is timeless... it will outlive us all... and it will get us through life. Yet I'm alone playing it to the wind. The idea other people sharing the joy brings me a subtle sense of joy.
You know those 2 seconds of that high school band chart you loved when you were younger? That perfect 3/4 note motif over that one perfect chord? That is what listening to this composition feels like. Absolutely chilling.
thanks for posting - i actually had this track on repeat during a 400km trip to melbourne yesterday, which is around 12 times over - keeps me calm while driving, especially in the metro area with all the maniacs about!!
It is very gratifying to read the comments here about this piece and the composer whose works I have loved for over forty years. Intelligent, insightful and positive.
Maybe because in the 70's skyscrapers had a modern aesthetic and people assimilated that with modern minimalistic music. They are both based on simplicity and economy of means and both give a sense of aloofness or impersonality. Also the movie Koyaanisqatsi (soundtrack by Philip Glass) shows a lot of skyscrapers. Maybe that's how skyscrapers became associated with minimalist music in popular consciousness. That's my interpretation only. I have no idea if minimalist composers make those inferences.
very complicated answer, but you left out the very simple and common sense explanation that the music was composed in New York City, which happens to have a lot of... you guessed it. edit: I also disagree with you that this music is aloof. To me it's the opposite of that, very warm and inviting. It's hard for me to think of any great music that is actually aloof, meaning distant and remote.
Perhaps Marc meant that it is a song that does not propose drama, romance or other strong emotion. But, in fact, for me it is a very joyful song, I would even say humorous.
Beautiful piece. Those erie, dark low brass swells near the end must be a nod to Bernard Hermann...so similar to the Taxi Driver score to my ears, but a completely different context. Stunning.
Interesting comment Andrew. I'm not normally in favour of comparing one composer's work against another's, but you really do make a valid point here. Brilliant.
I completely agree with your kid! This is definitely my calm music too. I used to work at my university's library in the media center during the closing night shifts. I would often put this piece on. Fond memories of my quiet time working there.
I discovered Steve Reich whilst at Uni and being subjected to the likes of Berio, Xenakis and Boulez etc. Not surprisingly my composition teacher (as well as many in the 'Society for Promotion of New Music') could not accept this sort of music - one lady even said, 'I don't know how they have the nerve!'. Well, I don't know how the Stockhausens and the Dallapiccolas and their ilk had the nerve to write music that is utterly unlistenable. As far as I am concerned minimalist music may sometimes be too simple but that is never true of Reich. I studied 'Different Trains' and the excellent 'Desert Music' for my final year dissertation. Time spent with Steve Reich - however atomically measured - is never wasted.
Agreed. Why must people in academia become so arrogant...anyone who knows their history should know that they they sound like the people who rejected Beethoven and Stravinsky, or WAM.
Sure, but when you say things like Stockhausen and his "ilk" wrote music "utterly unlistenable," you sound just like the arrogant academics you're complaining about. Why not just say people like what they like and leave it at that? There are plenty of artists and composers I can't stand, but that doesn't mean they're "unlistenable." How can I say that when there are millions of people who disagree with me. To each their own. Live and let live.
@@CptSchmidt that's true. i have taken the approach since i turned 40 that if i dont like the music of a well regarded composer, that i just have not accessed it yet. there are some that i appreciate and listen to on occasion, like scriabin or liszt, that are not favorites. but they are favorites of people whom i like and whose taste i respect....and Anthony Braxton whose playing i love loves Stockhausen. so....
Some months ago i was against my accademia for the approch but... Now i feel lucky because even if i have to study there Stockhausen and Berio none of the teacher would ever say Reich's music is unsustainable... And it is really not that simple: permutations and counterpoint are simple? Jesus, the most crucial Part is that it is enjoyable, not that obvious if we are talking of contemporary music, plus no one compose like him. You could wake up in the morning with the Intention to compose like that and surprise, it's not your stile, it's Steve Reich. Beside that you can complain about the length or everything else, in my opinion and for the rest of the world Steve reich is a pioneer of a Genre
Weed is illegal over here in the UK.....grew my own a few years ago and woke at 4AM...got up and lit a joint while my little family slept, just pottered round the garden...and I listened to Dark Side of the Moon.....changed my life. I'll do the same with this one day....think it might bring me to my knees. xx
@@rektyrektingson4668 Sat on a bench in my town, had a joint, a little slug of whiskey and watched the world go by with this playing. A little old lady came and had a chat about how pretty the leaves falling onto the pavement looked...she gave me a big hug and went on her way. Made me cry! Haha!
This is it. That's when music touches parts of the human brain and soul no other medium can reach. I remember listening to this piece many years ago when facing challenging personal times. This music came to rescue me. It's amazingly powerful in elevating and broadening your life's perception.
this has a "feel", an actual touch sense, to the vibration. the actual arrangement is positioned expertly... it's beyond most of our knowledge how mystical and futuristic this. no words can convey how sad the world is without it.
When I was a composition and voice student at Berklee in Boston I enjoyed many a repeat play of this piece in my Walkman, in 1988. I can still see the snowflakes spiralling as I walked between Trinity Church and the John Hancock Tower, mesmerized, transfixed, transported by the reflection of the church and the snowflakes in the stunning, reverential, reflective edifice...
Todd Merrell i live for moments like you've just described, and i can completely relate to your state at the time, even if i don't know anythng of you.... The soundtrack of our lives,, always composing itself....Like now, ive listened to Proverbs by Reich while sitting outside, and remembering happier days. How small a thought it takes to fill a whole life...
Ur intelligent, thoughtful description drew an amazing picture in my mind of standing in a forest as the sun sets, watching the flakes drifting down, people laughing, nature...wow.
Variations by Reich is in my top 3 of his compositions. Diff Trains, 18 Musicians and...these newer works I love also now: ruclips.net/video/scStzozjM-U/видео.htmlsi=8HTUuTEB85W6P0ma
This is the first time I heard this masterpiece from Steve Reich. I was sitting at Ontario Airport and they played it on 91.5 KUSC in L.A and it brought me to tears its so beautiful. I wish my brother could have heard this song ..😰😰😰😰
The pictures are a perfect depiction of what this feels like. A sublime feeling, as if you're watching the stars moving across the sky and the universe in dynamic motion, the planets orbiting the stars and the clouds in the sky changing shape.
The Skyscraper is the culmination of parametric architecture, algorithmic design, the comprehension of structural analysis and structural dynamics, the wherewithal of the double and triple skin facade, the beginning of high performance design, urban design, system integration, facade dynamics and the full capability of science and mathematics. Steve Reich, a genius of our time, spoke about this with his music, flawlessly.
I first heard this at the end of a late-night music program on CBC called "Brave New Waves" hosted by a wonderful man named Brent Bambury, in the late '80s or early 90s, and it remains my favorite work in orchestral minimalism. Thank you, Brent.
I just told my long-time partner that I wanted this piece played at my memorial service. This piece, like so much of Reich's, mirrors something that I value so, so much. A sense of rigor AND beauty, grace and precision...
I've always loved the "dephasing" effect in Reich's music, it really brought back the kind of things I would wonder about concerning my perception of sounds when I was a kid, and I thought that effect was very strange and even scary
This is one of my favourite pieces, but it's one that appears to have had few recorded performances; De Waart's is the one I have, and the only one I could find on cd. I love the fast, circular phrases of the woodwinds and keyboard parts set against the glacial chordal brass passages.
@@rdjazzboy1944 Not new indeed. I've had this CD since the year it was released (aging myself here :) and it's still precious to me. I didn't know it became unavailable, that's really sad.
I LOVE this recording, have it my cd collection, and on my old ipod, and on an old LG phone that I use now as an mp3 player!!! It's really one of my TOP favorites of Steve Reich's: was into minimalist music some in the 80s while in grad school, (masters degree in pno performance, but w/composer father and friends) then not listening much in intervening years of teaching, playing, raising a family BUT in the last few years back to listening so much more. THANK you for posting this I just love it. Happy New Year!
I used to fall into bed, and listen to late night radio. No matter how terrible my day had been, the soothing voice of John Schaefer (sp?) and the wonderful, mind opening music he played always reassured me that there was a world beyond the troubles and challeges I was facing. Such is the power of new music...to take us to places we might consider going....
Just heard this on the radio and was super hooked by it! Kinda feels like that one scene in the movie where the protagonist figures out something that changes the game, which is just...brilliant, I love this =)
IMHO: Unlike "Music for 18 Musicians" the faster harmonic rhythm of this work adds more interest and makes listening a bit more interactive. The instrumental incrementation (in and out combined with dynamics) also makes it more appealing.
What he adds in here is the breath-long phrasing in the long brass chords and strings which ground the more frenetic flurries of activity - to me though it creates a "theme and decoration" effect. I love the sound of it, have to say. But to my mind 18 Musicians is simply peerless, a completely realised piece tonally fascinating, harmonically rich and strong, rhythmically inventive and melodically ecstatic. Always been my top desert island disc.
This is indeed a wonderful piece of modern music. I hear it while writing, it wraps my mind and yet allows me to focus. I agree to the comment about the brass - wonderfully warm and rich in its ensemble sound. thanks for posting this.
Indeed. This and Arvo Pärt's Cantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten which is also one of the most moving pieces of music ever written IMO. But this one has been with me since 1983 and it at once moves me to tears and lifts my soul every time I hear it.
Its intresting to hear faster and slower versions of this. I think this tempo is perfect though. Those brass swells have so much drama and presence its insane
One place i would like to see this piece performed is Antwerp Train Station. Look it up, it's the perfect setting. If possible during the Christmas period.
That's interesting; I was thinking this piece had a similar feeling to some stuff on the Spirited Away soundtrack, too -- even before I read your comment.
yes! my first thought upon hearing this song, which prompted me to do some research :D "Inspired by his idols Terry Riley and Steve Reich and of African rhythms, (...) Hisaishi showcased his early compositional talents while exploring the theme of ma, which in Japanese roughly translates into 'emptiness'". Haven't yet found anything pertaining to Spirited Away's OST that relates to Reich specifically, but at least we know he was a fan and therefore probably put some of it into the movie's beautiful soundtrack!
When you get right down to it, the train ride to Swamp Bottom really is the greatest 5 minutes in cinematic history, isn't it? And Hisaishi's music has so much to do with it.
![Steve Reich - Variations for winds, strings and keyboards [w/score]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/1p2XXxO7gyE/mqdefault.jpg)
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![Hiroshi Yoshimura (吉村弘) - Wet Land (1993) [Full Album]](/img/1.gif)
Over the years I've discovered there's music that can evoke nostalgia for places and times you were never in. This is one.
this music, i have no words, its kind of liberation, a reset, new beginning, hope, a new tomorrow.
I live for those brass swells. Truly incredible.
what a find....the internet must love me to take me across so many pages, all to find this place
First time I heard this it was around about 1992 and I was driving on the M62 (the highest motorway in England and notorious for perilous driving conditions!) over Saddleworth (it's highest point) and the weather was absolutely atrocious: heavy rain and high crosswinds) then all of a sudden the dark sky cracked and the sun shone so brightly over the moors producing a rainbow in the distance. This piece was the perfect accompaniment to the sun breaking through the storm clouds and it makes me think about that journey every time I hear it. I've been a fan of Reich's music ever since. Simply beautiful.
Damn, they play this kind of stuff on the radio in the U.K. or did you have a CD?
@@reach4thesports897 On the occasion described it was actually on cassette in my friend's Citröen CX Pallas - it was a very long time ago! To answer your question fully, this kind of stuff does get played on the radio quite often over here on BBC Radio 3. Often thought of as an anachronism these days, Radio 3 is a lot more avant garde than most people think, especially towards the late evening and its through the night programming. It's worth checking out if you can stream it in your part of the world - as I say, the more esoteric stuff like this tends to get played at night.
Another Reich piece that might've worked for that scenario..."It gon' rain, it gon' rain, it gon' rain"
@@reach4thesports897 Yes, on channels like Radio 3 and Classic fm. These are two UK radio stations where you'd hear something like this played.
@@maxgregorycompositions6216 now that’s culture!
Steve Reich simply transcends everyone else in the genre of Minimalism.
Philip Glass comes close
@@seeling_liebe Indeed he does... but Arvo Pärt comes even closer for me (ruclips.net/video/sp2oxWdRMuk/видео.html). Both him and Reich have a way to connect to my emotions directly and elevate me like few musicians/composers do in minimalism or other genres. But I agree with Paul that Reich transcends everyone else in minimalism.
I can't agree: it's John Adams for me. But I love this piece.
@@thomasanderson6879 I agree with you 100%. In the end it may be about specific pieces by Reich or Adams. Some tracks on Philip Glass's "1000 Airplanes on the Roof" are wonderful listening. Maybe the one called "Labyrinth" and the two that follow it. But I can O-D on Glass fairly quickly. In the past year I discovered Salonen's orchestral compositions.
@@rr7firefly I'll have a listen to some of Salonen's works. Thanks for the tip. Yes, both Glass and Reich write music that can be wonderful and in the case of Glass often cathartic, but like you I can quickly tire of them. I've been listening to some of Adams' pieces for over twenty years and they still sound fresh and inspiring (Harmonielehre, Common Tones in Simple Time and Fearful Symmetries are personal favourites). The Big Three have all carved out their own musical niches and complement each other very well.
Heard this for the first time in the Title Sequence of the film, "The Humans" Beautiful piece.
12.09 👌
This music expresses the feeling of the composer.
It's a joy ! ☀️
The organ is amazing! 👌
Luxuriously executed and beautiful paintings.
I love it so much! Listening to this makes me grateful for beling alive, just to experiencing this. Amazing Steve.. who gave us so much through his music!
Without a doubt and by far my favorite piece by Reich. It generates a certain interior calmness as if I have turned away and isolated myself from a frantic world. I feel I am just observing the world, not participating, but disconnecting and giving my soul a moment to itself.
I regret I only have one like to give. Dislikes are obviously those without a clue.
I feel the same way about it. My favorite by far from him although I have a soft spot for Music for a Large Ensemble and Octet as these are the first two pieces of his I heard. But this one moves and elevates me like few pieces of music in any genres can.
One of my favorites too though I can see why Steve Reich himself is not too fond of this piece.
What I love about this piece (and other minimalist works as well) is that it reverses roles, where the chords change while the ostinato remains (relatively) constant, subverting their roles in the "motion across a background" idea. I try to do this with my own electronic music, and when it works, it's spine-tingling.
Came for the brutalism, stayed for the minimalism
The cover photo is apparently the Q-Park “Beehive” parking garage in Rotterdam in case anyone else was wondering. It’s a shame that so many cool buildings are filled with cars
underrated comment
Heard this for the very first time ...caught this on NPR Knoxville yesterday.... absolutely breathtaking... became the definition of distracted driving... had to pull over to enjoy... sublime. Thank you for posting and leading me to a new undiscovered place!!... I need to investigate more of this composer's catalog.
Agreed...sublime.
Legitimately couldn't keep a smile off my face listening to this. There is a childlike curiosity here, as if the melody is experiencing, and discovering itself. Carefully, tenderly, but all the while exulting with its own path. Brings me to tears
Great music, thank you for sharing. Greatings.
_"'Variations for Winds, Strings and Keyboards' (1979) introduces new harmonic, formal and timbre material into my music. The constant yet slow harmonic change (there are no repeat markings in this score), the slow recurrence of materials form variation to variation, and the scoring for oboes, flutes, full brass, strings, acoustic and electric keyboards, all give this piece a sound quite different from my earlier music._
_These variations are on a harmonic progression somewhat in the manner of chaconne, but with a considerably longer harmonic progression than the four or eight bar progressions customarily found in the chaconne. The progression begins in C minor (or C dorian) and works its way via several keys into C-flat, enharmonically to B, and then, by gradually dropping sharps or adding flats, moves slowly back to C minor (or C dorian). These are three variations on the complete cycle lasting approximately six, ten and nine minutes each. The harmonic progression is followed in the middle register so that from time to time the bass may vary from variation to variation. The rhythm of the melodic patterns in the winds remains more or less constant throughout each variation, while the notes slowly, yet constantly, change to match the changing harmony. In the first variation the rhythmic pattern for the winds is two bars long, changing meters back and forth between 6/4 and 5/4. The second variation begins as two bars of alternating 5/4 and 6/4 and, after about a minute, changes into two bars of 8/4, each divided into five plus three. The final variation pattern is four bars long, changing meters 4/4, 6/4, 4/4 and 3/4 Since the first variation uses only quarter and eighth notes, while the second and third introduce an increasing amount of sixteenths, the effect is one of becoming more and florid and melismatic._
_At all times throughout the piece there are at least two wind instruments playing the melodic pattern in harmony with each other, while a third plays in cannon with the upper voice. The winds, three oboes doubled by electric organs, or three flutes doubled by two pianos and electric organs, play the melodic material throughout, while the slowly changing harmonies are played by the strings also doubled by electric organs. During the first and last variation a full brass section of three trumpets, three trombones and tuba gradually fade in and out, to complete the harmony of the middle register strings and organs."_
-Steve Reich
if only I knew music theory
Thank you
genius. thank you for saving us the search. wishing health upon you.
So beautiful.
My favourite Reich piece and for me the height of this style of minimalism...the gradually shifting complexities and the lightness of spirit...wonderful and hypnotic.
I used to listen to this piece as a student, lying on my bed in the dark, eyes closed and just go on a journey, it was magical.
Yup. I get that. I do much the same.
In a 2006 interview Steve said he wasn't that happy with the piece. I think we all agree he was wrong. This is his first orchestral piece and may be his best. The more I listen to it the more I like it. When the massive bass line moves from scale step 5 to 4 I am reminded of great moments in Wagner when the dominant resolves to the subdominant.
how could he be not happy with it... it sounds like heaven
@@larkstonguesinaspic4814 i think a lot of artists are not that happy with their work, because there is the feeling like they could do more. But it's not there the problem
@@lostinthefaq Very, very true. Great comment.
You may have heard of Philip Glass - but Steve Reich is the master. Love his use of synths. Other great composers like Max Richter following suit now. But Steve will always take you to unexplored places in YOUR OWN MIND.
totally agree Phillip Glass never has grabbed me the way S Reich has~I am a prof musician (pianist) piece Six pianos first heard it ca 1982-83 when I was in grad school, big comp/theory dept there, just GRABBED me then!
I kinda think of Max Richter as a fake
this shit would have blown my mind if I was alive when it dropped
edit: it still blows my mind
Sounds like if the weight of the whole planet Earth was above you, but as a paper sphere... and suddenly, it swinged towards your right and then you could carry it using the point of your finger, like a chinese light boat floating gently, sending rays of colorful light across the space, in perfect silence... and at the same time, an impish noise started to grow in your body, warm as a lit fireplace in winter.
If only I could paint what my imagination is creating thanks to this wonderful music...
When Western contemporary classical music turned towards beauty and it has been doing so since.
Proud to belong to the tribe of humans to which this music deeply means something ❤
have a good one brothers and sisters
That is a great statement, which insights that music creates belonging
cheers, love, health, and happy senses manifested for us all gathered in these spaces.
back atcha!
A piece that should get FAR more performances than it does; unique among even Reich's own catalogue of works.
The obstinate of the high notes reminds me of an oriental melody. Great music.
The sence of completeness that I get from this repeated listening for 20 years ....I feel whole after I immerse myself in this simply peerless composition
Back in college, i used to sleep at my girlfriend's place and, since she had to go to work early in the morning, we used to walk to the bus station when the city was still dark and asleep: cars, traffic and bystanders just starting to crowd the streets. Once she hopped on the bus, i would walk back home listening to this and other Reich's works.
6 years later, those brasses give me the chills, and deep, strong memories (including the cold morning breeze, the scent of her hair) run through my head. What a piece.
Nidstang68 beautiful images. Lovely.
what a great story. it really does go great with this piece. thanks for sharing
You should watch a movie called Morvern Callar. I think you might like it.
anything that brings the scent of your lovers hair back.....
Goes perfectly with the piece, thanks :D
What I truly love about this composition is that Reich doesn't rely on a battery of percussion instruments to give the "colour" to the work, as so many modern day composers do.
Well I'm back again....and yes, instantly crying my eyes out !! everytime....it's magic I think.x
unbelievable💕💕💕💕
this is a masterpiece
I thought this was his masterpiece for a long time. Love it. Then I introduced myself to Music for 18 Musicians, and life never was the same . . . Cheers!
Yes, it is...
I'm 70 and I'have just discovered this musician for 2 weeks only. What a loose of time. he is awsome !
I too, am 70. I discovered him in my twenties when his work was new. I would also recommend Music for 18 Musicians, since you love this. Cheers.
Yeah and electric counterpoint is another beautiful piece 👌
Congratulations.....This is a great discovery
@@mindremapping-CPS I am 64 a musician and coming back to this, it's never too late! :-)
I'm only in my late twenties. Not another person or thing in sight sometimes. Enlightening myself with tons of real history the world has no idea of daily-- such as this. Art and this musical language the whole world speaks is timeless... it will outlive us all... and it will get us through life. Yet I'm alone playing it to the wind. The idea other people sharing the joy brings me a subtle sense of joy.
There aren't enough variations! More variations, I say! More!
This is beautiful, it makes me feel alive during a time when on many days I feel dead on my feet.
How is it? We are alive. What a phantastic event-- life!
You know those 2 seconds of that high school band chart you loved when you were younger?
That perfect 3/4 note motif over that one perfect chord?
That is what listening to this composition feels like. Absolutely chilling.
This old trombonist gets that.
Très beau morceau musical de Reich de musique répétitive qui ne se répète pas et qui demeure très subtile douce et agréable à écouter
thanks for posting - i actually had this track on repeat during a 400km trip to melbourne yesterday, which is around 12 times over - keeps me calm while driving, especially in the metro area with all the maniacs about!!
So beautiful. 😎🎹
Inter dimensional music for inter dimensional people. 🙏🏾✨🌍
I love this, and the Adams 'Shaker Loops' pieces. The brass on 'Variations' is so warm and all-enveloping.
shaker loops is amazing
I can hear this piece played in a huge cathedral with the base line played on a big pipe organ.
It is very gratifying to read the comments here about this piece and the composer whose works I have loved for over forty years. Intelligent, insightful and positive.
This is sound therapy at its finest
Linda obra minimalista, numa ótima gravação!
What's the deal with minimalist composers and skyscrapers? /Seinfeld
SIM CITY I TELL YA
Maybe because in the 70's skyscrapers had a modern aesthetic and people assimilated that with modern minimalistic music. They are both based on simplicity and economy of means and both give a sense of aloofness or impersonality. Also the movie Koyaanisqatsi (soundtrack by Philip Glass) shows a lot of skyscrapers. Maybe that's how skyscrapers became associated with minimalist music in popular consciousness. That's my interpretation only. I have no idea if minimalist composers make those inferences.
very complicated answer, but you left out the very simple and common sense explanation that the music was composed in New York City, which happens to have a lot of... you guessed it.
edit: I also disagree with you that this music is aloof. To me it's the opposite of that, very warm and inviting. It's hard for me to think of any great music that is actually aloof, meaning distant and remote.
Very smart considerations! Indeed, there are a similarity between the construction of minimalist music and construction of these buildings.
Perhaps Marc meant that it is a song that does not propose drama, romance or other strong emotion. But, in fact, for me it is a very joyful song, I would even say humorous.
Beautiful piece. Those erie, dark low brass swells near the end must be a nod to Bernard Hermann...so similar to the Taxi Driver score to my ears, but a completely different context. Stunning.
Interesting comment Andrew. I'm not normally in favour of comparing one composer's work against another's, but you really do make a valid point here. Brilliant.
My 9-year-old refers to this CD as her "Calm Music." She loves it!
awwe!! start them young on good music!!
I completely agree with your kid! This is definitely my calm music too.
I used to work at my university's library in the media center during the closing night shifts. I would often put this piece on. Fond memories of my quiet time working there.
Fantastic, she must be 10 now and more than ready for Steve's 6 Marimbas. Good luck.
raising them right.
CD'S !
I discovered Steve Reich whilst at Uni and being subjected to the likes of Berio, Xenakis and Boulez etc. Not surprisingly my composition teacher (as well as many in the 'Society for Promotion of New Music') could not accept this sort of music - one lady even said, 'I don't know how they have the nerve!'. Well, I don't know how the Stockhausens and the Dallapiccolas and their ilk had the nerve to write music that is utterly unlistenable. As far as I am concerned minimalist music may sometimes be too simple but that is never true of Reich. I studied 'Different Trains' and the excellent 'Desert Music' for my final year dissertation. Time spent with Steve Reich - however atomically measured - is never wasted.
Agreed. Why must people in academia become so arrogant...anyone who knows their history should know that they they sound like the people who rejected Beethoven and Stravinsky, or WAM.
Sure, but when you say things like Stockhausen and his "ilk" wrote music "utterly unlistenable," you sound just like the arrogant academics you're complaining about. Why not just say people like what they like and leave it at that? There are plenty of artists and composers I can't stand, but that doesn't mean they're "unlistenable." How can I say that when there are millions of people who disagree with me. To each their own. Live and let live.
@@CptSchmidt that's true. i have taken the approach since i turned 40 that if i dont like the music of a well regarded composer, that i just have not accessed it yet. there are some that i appreciate and listen to on occasion, like scriabin or liszt, that are not favorites. but they are favorites of people whom i like and whose taste i respect....and Anthony Braxton whose playing i love loves Stockhausen. so....
Some months ago i was against my accademia for the approch but... Now i feel lucky because even if i have to study there Stockhausen and Berio none of the teacher would ever say Reich's music is unsustainable... And it is really not that simple: permutations and counterpoint are simple? Jesus, the most crucial Part is that it is enjoyable, not that obvious if we are talking of contemporary music, plus no one compose like him. You could wake up in the morning with the Intention to compose like that and surprise, it's not your stile, it's Steve Reich. Beside that you can complain about the length or everything else, in my opinion and for the rest of the world Steve reich is a pioneer of a Genre
Take a gold medal as reward!
sounds sensational when stoned on a cold crisp bright morning
Weed is illegal over here in the UK.....grew my own a few years ago and woke at 4AM...got up and lit a joint while my little family slept, just pottered round the garden...and I listened to Dark Side of the Moon.....changed my life. I'll do the same with this one day....think it might bring me to my knees. xx
@@iseeolly9959 Beautiful. Did you ever end up doing, my friend?
@@rektyrektingson4668 Sat on a bench in my town, had a joint, a little slug of whiskey and watched the world go by with this playing. A little old lady came and had a chat about how pretty the leaves falling onto the pavement looked...she gave me a big hug and went on her way. Made me cry! Haha!
@@iseeolly9959 awwww what lovely little story. Thanks for sharing!
This is it. That's when music touches parts of the human brain and soul no other medium can reach. I remember listening to this piece many years ago when facing challenging personal times. This music came to rescue me. It's amazingly powerful in elevating and broadening your life's perception.
This is a hit!
This is the New Baroque. Automaton.
this has a "feel", an actual touch sense, to the vibration. the actual arrangement is positioned expertly... it's beyond most of our knowledge how mystical and futuristic this. no words can convey how sad the world is without it.
You're sad.
When I was a composition and voice student at Berklee in Boston I enjoyed many a repeat play of this piece in my Walkman, in 1988. I can still see the snowflakes spiralling as I walked between Trinity Church and the John Hancock Tower, mesmerized, transfixed, transported by the reflection of the church and the snowflakes in the stunning, reverential, reflective edifice...
Todd Merrell i live for moments like you've just described, and i can completely relate to your state at the time, even if i don't know anythng of you.... The soundtrack of our lives,, always composing itself....Like now, ive listened to Proverbs by Reich while sitting outside, and remembering happier days. How small a thought it takes to fill a whole life...
that path is very familiar to me
Ur intelligent, thoughtful description drew an amazing picture in my mind of standing in a forest as the sun sets, watching the flakes drifting down, people laughing, nature...wow.
Beautifuly written. A wonderfully constructed passage.
Stop being so artistic please dull your sense and obey the dark master!
Variations by Reich is in my top 3 of his compositions. Diff Trains, 18 Musicians and...these newer works I love also now: ruclips.net/video/scStzozjM-U/видео.htmlsi=8HTUuTEB85W6P0ma
This is the first time I heard this masterpiece from Steve Reich. I was sitting at Ontario Airport and they played it on 91.5 KUSC in L.A and it brought me to tears its so beautiful. I wish my brother could have heard this song ..😰😰😰😰
Yeah, I get that. This particular piece gets me every time.
The pictures are a perfect depiction of what this feels like. A sublime feeling, as if you're watching the stars moving across the sky and the universe in dynamic motion, the planets orbiting the stars and the clouds in the sky changing shape.
I needed this today.
The Skyscraper is the culmination of parametric architecture, algorithmic design, the comprehension of structural analysis and structural dynamics, the wherewithal of the double and triple skin facade, the beginning of high performance design, urban design, system integration, facade dynamics and the full capability of science and mathematics.
Steve Reich, a genius of our time, spoke about this with his music, flawlessly.
You should put your text on a loop!
Me and Hoppy said that in 1979.
it feels like your soul is flying
cela met dans un trés bon état psychique, aussitôt
I first heard this at the end of a late-night music program on CBC called "Brave New Waves" hosted by a wonderful man named Brent Bambury, in the late '80s or early 90s, and it remains my favorite work in orchestral minimalism. Thank you, Brent.
First movement 0:03
Second movement 5:14
Third movement 13:26 -13:27
I just told my long-time partner that I wanted this piece played at my memorial service. This piece, like so much of Reich's, mirrors something that I value so, so much. A sense of rigor AND beauty, grace and precision...
BTW, I bought a CD of one of the recordings, so as to not rely completely on RUclips!
I want that too then
I've always loved the "dephasing" effect in Reich's music, it really brought back the kind of things I would wonder about concerning my perception of sounds when I was a kid, and I thought that effect was very strange and even scary
This is one of my favourite pieces, but it's one that appears to have had few recorded performances; De Waart's is the one I have, and the only one I could find on cd. I love the fast, circular phrases of the woodwinds and keyboard parts set against the glacial chordal brass passages.
Thanks so much for this!! always on the hunt for new Steve Reich
Well, the sad truth is, it's not new... just unavailable. It seems like a crime to me. Cheers. From one fan to another.
@@rdjazzboy1944 Not new indeed. I've had this CD since the year it was released (aging myself here :) and it's still precious to me. I didn't know it became unavailable, that's really sad.
underrated. one of my favourites of his
My all time Steve REICH favorite...I like steve works since 50 years ....
I'm just delighted to see so many heartfelt comments about Reich's music. I've collected several of his works including this one and it's my favorite.
Steve Reich the type of music where if the record got into a locked groove it would take you like five minutes to even notice
Just as well hardly anyone listens to vinyl anymore
@@arminhanik4207 people listen to vinyl......
@@tn5074 - For some reason.
@@tn5074 nobody under the age of 50
15:20 Really reminds me brass from Taxi Driver introduction by Herrmann, stunning !
I LOVE this recording, have it my cd collection, and on my old ipod, and on an old LG phone that I use now as an mp3 player!!! It's really one of my TOP favorites of Steve Reich's: was into minimalist music some in the 80s while in grad school, (masters degree in pno performance, but w/composer father and friends) then not listening much in intervening years of teaching, playing, raising a family BUT in the last few years back to listening so much more. THANK you for posting this I just love it. Happy New Year!
blessings upon your new year and family... these works enlighten my young mind. I find solace in knowing other people still have a taste for it..
I used to fall into bed, and listen to late night radio. No matter how terrible my day had been, the soothing voice of John Schaefer (sp?) and the wonderful, mind opening music he played always reassured me that there was a world beyond the troubles and challeges I was facing. Such is the power of new music...to take us to places we might consider going....
I first heard this on cassete around 1985 and gave it to my aged mother who still listens to it and loves it, as do I.
Sounds like the soundtrack of an adventure anime. Reminds me of Miyazaki films and the series "made in abyss".
Wow...made me cry! What texture....hats off the recording engineers also...thanks for this x
Just heard this on the radio and was super hooked by it! Kinda feels like that one scene in the movie where the protagonist figures out something that changes the game, which is just...brilliant, I love this =)
IMHO: Unlike "Music for 18 Musicians" the faster harmonic rhythm of this work adds more interest and makes listening a bit more interactive. The instrumental incrementation (in and out combined with dynamics) also makes it more appealing.
What he adds in here is the breath-long phrasing in the long brass chords and strings which ground the more frenetic flurries of activity - to me though it creates a "theme and decoration" effect. I love the sound of it, have to say.
But to my mind 18 Musicians is simply peerless, a completely realised piece tonally fascinating, harmonically rich and strong, rhythmically inventive and melodically ecstatic. Always been my top desert island disc.
Teachers of students with ADHD or autism - play this in your class... and WATCH what happens!!!!
A wonderful intro to January 1, 2019 -- harbinger of sympathetic motion.
You nailed it with the phrase: "sympathetic motion," the rhythms of nature are everywhere in his music.
@@rdjazzboy1944 Tapping into the beauty of that unity is the beginning of an altered state that feels both reflective and inspirational.
This is indeed a wonderful piece of modern music. I hear it while writing, it wraps my mind and yet allows me to focus. I agree to the comment about the brass - wonderfully warm and rich in its ensemble sound. thanks for posting this.
this sh goes hard, i feel complete
We played this in our studio for nights on end.
Really an incredible piece. Anyone who doubts the relevance of modern classical music should give this a serious listen!
Indeed. This and Arvo Pärt's Cantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten which is also one of the most moving pieces of music ever written IMO. But this one has been with me since 1983 and it at once moves me to tears and lifts my soul every time I hear it.
nitewars this, and other modern music speaks to me much deeper than most “old” classical
Wonderful
Memory and emotion as one! Thank you mr. Reich.
I swell with emotion as I play this at peak volume. It is pure magic. Thank you Steve Reich ;_;
génialissime
flowers bloom, cells divide one by one and rain falls, only to be dried up by the sun in due time. you are alive. 🍀
Its intresting to hear faster and slower versions of this. I think this tempo is perfect though. Those brass swells have so much drama and presence its insane
Try gazing at photos of Hang Son Doong while listening here.
I see him as a musical sculpter.
pasding it on to my kids. i am imprinting steve‘s music deep and subtle in their dna. whatever they become: it will help them 🥰
Aw, that's sweet. Mr. Reich would approve.
seems to have inspired SimCity 4 soundtrack
the swells in this are fuckin A-plus good steve double plus good job mate
One place i would like to see this piece performed is Antwerp Train Station. Look it up, it's the perfect setting. If possible during the Christmas period.
my favourite comment about Reich's music was georgiu Ligeti's : "It's very good music. It's also very enjoyable !"
This is life changing fr
First time listening to this. Magnificent.
I suppose this inspired Joe Hisaishi for the Spirited Away soundtrack... the vibe is so similar!!
That's interesting; I was thinking this piece had a similar feeling to some stuff on the Spirited Away soundtrack, too -- even before I read your comment.
yes! my first thought upon hearing this song, which prompted me to do some research :D
"Inspired by his idols Terry Riley and Steve Reich and of African rhythms, (...) Hisaishi showcased his early compositional talents while exploring the theme of ma, which in Japanese roughly translates into 'emptiness'". Haven't yet found anything pertaining to Spirited Away's OST that relates to Reich specifically, but at least we know he was a fan and therefore probably put some of it into the movie's beautiful soundtrack!
Agreed.
When you get right down to it, the train ride to Swamp Bottom really is the greatest 5 minutes in cinematic history, isn't it? And Hisaishi's music has so much to do with it.
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