By the '90s, a number of record labels began to re-investigate some of the earlier, pre-fame works of
minimalist composers, both established figures (such as
Reich,
Glass, and
Riley), as well as those who were less well-known. This collections gathers together several of
Steve Reich's compositions from 1967-1970 (several years before his magnum opus
Drumming), including three pieces for keyboards and three brief performances of an unusual work for freely swinging microphones.
Phase Patterns and
Four Organs had been issued on an obscure
Shandar LP, and the latter had also been available on a
Columbia recording paired with some
John Cage pieces for prepared piano. Here, they are given vibrant new readings by members of the German new music group,
Ensemble Avant Garde. The electric organs play short, repeated patterns that gradually go in and out of phase with each other, creating a shimmering matrix of sound that is both hypnotic and fascinating in detail.
Piano Phase, for two pianos, uses a similar methodology but comes to quite different ends due to the acoustic nature of the instrument. Once again, brief sequences are played, first in unison then gradually sliding out of phase. Instead of the overlapping sonic aura produced by the organs, however, the unsustained piano notes generate an amazingly complex fabric of flickering patterns. One can clearly hear the seeds being sewn for
Reich's later masterworks herein. The three versions of
Pendulum Music are intriguing curiosities in which the music is produced by swinging microphones suspended from long chords past loudspeakers, the interference and feedback briefly generated becoming the substance of the piece. Depending on the amplitude of the swing, the rhythms decay and overlap at different rates resulting, as usual with
Reich's work, emergent patterns of engaging complexity. Along with the
Nonesuch release of his tape pieces,
Come Out and It's Gonna Rain, this is a vital document of his earlier work and should be heard by any fan of
Reich or minimalism in general. Highly recommended. ~ Brian Olewnick
