Steve Reich Four Sections

The four sections 26 00 1 i.
Steve reich four sections. It was completed in august 1987 and given its premier that year on 7 october conducted by michael tilson thomas in davies hall. The piece was commissioned for the san francisco symphony in honour of its 75th anniversary by the widow of ralph dorfman. Steve reich s music is based around the phase shifting of percussion instruments.
Percussion 2 29 3 iii. Reich was conscious that he may have been straying too close to conventional symphonic music with this piece and made a point of not following it up with more. The four sections is performed by the london symphony orchestra with reich s percussion ensemble and yet manages to project more personality than the ensemble alone does on music for mallet instruments voices and organ.
By 1986 when he composed four sections reich s usual repetition and phasing of short motifs had given way to more extended melodic lines allowing for more conventionl symphonic argument. The four sections is an orchestral work by the minimalist american composer steve reich.