Steve Reich titled as the 'greatest living composer of our time' has pushed musical composition into the future.
He creates melodies and rhythms using a process called
Phasing. Phasing is when melodic patterns gradually fall out of sync; he pioneered this practice throughout the sixties with pieces such as 'Pendulum Music' and 'Piano Phases.'
Reich's work encompasses musical concepts by creating machine like processes and compositions. 'Its Gonna Rain' highlights Reich's fascination with repetition and the use of language as a musical component. The beat that you hear in the background of 'Its Gonna Rain' is a pigeon that takes flight at the exact same moment that the preacher screams It Gonna Rain! supposedly warning his fellow Americans of a flood (filmed by Reich himself.)
What I enjoy most of all about Reich's work is his attention to detail and the disguised complexity of his ideas. Phasing the music engages the brain into counterpointing the lost rhythm when it comes out of sync, meaning that your brain compensates for this loss, so it will always sound like a melody.
His productions are far from simple (although they may sound that way) and include a huge range of instruments and vocals which all have a fundamental purpose; his 'Drumming' pieces were created after his research trip to Africa, in order to understand the instrument better and how musicians form complex pieces without a Composer.
The complete works of Steve Reich are available on Spotify - you should listen just for your health.
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