For the next week at Q2, the new music stream from WQXR in New York, we celebrate Steve Reich with a variety of concerts, interviews and videos of the composer and his music. We're calling it Maximum Reich. On this page, the composer himself introduces five of his milestone works.
Reich seems to burn at a different temperature than ordinary humans. Whether it's hotter or cooler is still unclear, but one thing is certain: He generates white-hot passions in listeners. When we were considering an immersive debut festival for Q2, we knew it had to be Steve Reich. He embodies everything we hope for the stream to be: from and of New York City; dynamic, intellectually stimulating and emotionally engaging. Okay, perhaps controversial sometimes, and above all, restless and constantly craving discovery. Wherever you might be on the passion scale, there's no denying that he's been a defining part of the contemporary musical and artistic scene. In this weeklong festival, Reich speaks not only through his music, but in interviews and specially recorded introductions to his seminal works. — Limor Tomer, Executive Producer WNYC / WQXR
(To hear ongoing coverage of 'Maximum Reich' click on the link above. To discover more coverage on Q2, click here.)
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