Steve Reich – Storytelling ("Music for Mallet instruments, voices and organ")

Steve Reich’s approach was to create music in which the compositional process was perceptible. Music should be seen as a gradual process, and he himself stated: “I want to be able to hear the process happening throughout the sounding music.” This approach was honestly little accessible to me, because I simply could not imagine how a process can be made audible. Precisely, I thought of a piece that evolves over time. However, Steve Reich managed to compose several pieces that I consider as vivid; they tell a story.

In my opinion, his composition “Different Trains” manages to lively portray his childhood experiences, and expresses his sympathy and empathy towards European, Jewish kids. While listening to the piece, I felt like I was experiencing parts of his life as a child in a summarized or accelerated version. I imagine him sitting in a train for hours and days in order to meet both of his parent, probably thinking about other Jewish children that were simultaneously brought to concentration camps. The play manages to create a musical-like setting, and the overall atmosphere is very dramatic. However, “Different Trains” is not the main focus of my report. I simply mentioned it to support my position concerning storytelling.

For several reasons, his piece “Music for Mallet instruments, voices and organ” stood out for me. Although it might not be Reich’s most famous composition, I perceive it as very enjoyable, and also exciting at the same time. When we listened to it in class, I remember immediately getting absorbed by its dynamic. Obviously, the name of the piece implies that there are some sort of vocals included, but I honestly did not hear them right away. The women’s vocals could have also been – for me at least – any other wind instrument that was played a bit sloppy. The rhythmic pattern of the glockenspiel, accompanied by the women’s vocals reminded me of something like an Asian spring festival. The first picture that came to my mind was a procession in China, and I was reminded of the movie “Mulan”.

The repetitive pattern of the piece slightly changes, as for instance the women’s voices are drawn-out, and some new vocals are added. Those slight changes are what I mean by “vivid”. The composition evolves insofar that there is never a stagnant part of the story that is told in my mind. The exact moment the vocals change, the circumstance of the picture in my mind changes as well. To be concrete, the Chinese procession moves along the city towards a big palace. People on the street perform acrobatic movements, conjuring tricks, and spread positivity. The glockenspiel serves as the basis of the piece, and maintains the core essence. The women’s voices are the most perceptible changes in my opinion.

When I compare the beginning of the play with the end of the play, it does not differ dramatically, but there has definitely been a shift in terms of dynamic and speed. The speed increased, and various vocals are added or changed. Referring back to Steve Reich’s approach, I can now somewhat understand when he talks about music as a process. His play evolves within itself, and there is no observable endpoint, unless the composer himself decides to end the composition.