◇ Steve Reich: influences, techniques and politics [HD] IntoThe Music, ABC Radio National - YouTube
Steve Reich was in Sydney in April 2012 as 'composer-in-residence' at
the Sydney Opera House. In this thoughtful and at times provocative interview with RN's Cathy Peters, he discusses his technique of using spoken word documentary fragments in compositions like Different Trains and The Cave and why he chooses particular recordings and fragments of actuality. He argues against any view that suggests that art or music can influence politics or indeed influence the way his audiences perceive politics.Reich also discusses his early love of jazz and his visits to Birdland
in NY as a young lad, listening to the great bebop jazz masters.You can hear Reich discussing other aspects of his compositional style
and major works like WTC 9/11 in the radio feature, "Steve Reich in
Words and Music" on ABC RN -
◇ Three Tales (opera) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Three Tales is a video-opera in three acts (titled Hindenburg, Bikini and Dolly) with music by American composer Steve Reich and visuals by Beryl Korot, his wife. It is scored for two sopranos, three tenors, string quartet, percussion, keyboards, and pre-recorded audio. Its premiere was at the Vienna Festival on May 12, 2002; the BBC had commissioned a version for television broadcast four months later. The 12-minute tale Hindenburg had been written (and recorded) in 1998, while the remaining tales were completed (and recorded) in the year of the premiere.
The musical narrative of Three Tales follows "speech melodies" of pre-recorded interviews, and in many ways resembles Reich's works The Cave (1990–1993), City Life (1995) and Different Trains (1988). The libretto of Three Tales can be found on the website of the composer (see bottom of page).
Three Tales is a response to nearly a hundred years of modern technology, concerning the explosion of the Hindenburg, nuclear testings on Bikini Atoll, and the cloning of Dolly the sheep (drawing connections between genetic engineering and artificial intelligence). The different stories are told from various perspectives, with speech culled from interviews with eye-witnesses, audiovisual documentary material of both the Hindenburg and Bikini tragedies, and experts in computer science (e.g. Marvin Minsky and Kevin Warwick), artificial intelligence (Rodney Brooks), Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, and genetic engineering (Richard Dawkins).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Tales_(opera)
◇ Steve Reich - the making of WTC 9/11 [HD] The Music Show, ABC Radio National - YouTube
http://youtu.be/dpRwOnZebOQ
◇ Steve Reich - rhythm and minimalism [HD] The Music Show, ABC Radio National - YouTube
http://youtu.be/pFS8Ru27rqs
◇ Steve Reich - It's Gonna Rain (1965) - YouTube
http://youtu.be/vugqRAX7xQE
◇ Steve Reich - Come Out (1966) - YouTube
http://youtu.be/uGDo1YN_q3c
