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Finding the groove: Steve Reich at 90

2026-10-16T08:10:54.577

SteveReich-3_Jennifer-Taylor

How do string players make Steve Reich’s meticulously crafted music come alive? To celebrate the US composer’s 90th birthday, leading performers of his works share their insights with Pwyll ap Siôn

For a composer whose three string quartets would become known as some of the finest ever written for the medium, it was not the most auspicious of beginnings. Picture the scene. It’s 5 August 1969; a concert of new music at the University of California, Berkeley. A violinist named Paul Zukofsky comes on to perform a piece called Violin Phase by up-and-coming American composer Steve Reich. A tape machine repeats the same phrase, over and over. Several audience members shuffle impatiently in their seats. Others hiss under their breath. A few register their disapproval by applauding sarcastically. One or two give up and walk out…

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