Steve Reich at 90: The Desert Music
Pulsing. Hypnotic. Music that grabs hold.
Who’s on stage
Colin Currie steps up as conductor, bringing together members of his own Colin Currie Group with Royal Northern Sinfonia to kick off our Steve Reich at 90 festival.
What they’re playing
Percussion meets piano in a night dedicated to Steve Reich – the master of rhythm and repetition.
Our birthday celebrations start with some of his best-known pieces, including a mesmerising performance by Colin Currie and Royal Northern Sinfonia’s Jude Carlton of Clapping Music. You’ll also hear the driving energy of Runner, the interlocking lines of Double Sextet and the epic sweep of The Desert Music. Expect sound that’s raw, intricate, and relentless.
Need to know
Discounts: save if you’re under 17, aged 18 – 30, a classical first timer, or a group of 10 or more people. Check the details.
Multibuy: book two concerts and save 15%, book three or more and save 20%, across the Steve Reich at 90 weekend.
Running time: 2 hours, including a 20 minute interval.
Age: under 14s must be accompanied by an adult.
What you'll hear
Steve Reich Clapping Music
Steve Reich Runner
Steve Reich Double Sextet
Steve Reich arr. Alan Pierson The Desert Music
Who's playing it
Colin Currie conductor/percussion
Jude Carlton percussion
Royal Northern Sinfonia
What's happening in the music?
Steve Reich changed the way we listen. His music is built on rhythm, pattern, and momentum – sounds that repeat, shift, and transform until they pull you into something bigger than the notes themselves.
Clapping Music is pure stripped back percussion. Two performers. Just their hands. A single rhythm that slides slowly out of sync and back again. While Runner is like a sprint for large ensemble. Pianos and percussion chase each other through a pulsing five-part structure, driving forward with restless energy. Double Sextet is a piece so bold it won Reich the Pulitzer Prize. Hear two identical sextets live, packed with interlocking riffs, dizzying cross-rhythms, and an almost orchestral sweep.
Steve Reich’s The Desert Music is a hypnotic work that blurs the lines between speech and song, rhythm and pulse. It takes the words of American poet William Carlos Williams and shifts them between whispers and shouts, from jagged rhythms to shimmering stillness.
Take a listen
Hear Steve Reich’s interview about composing Runner.
