Borealis 2011

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Steve Reich

Steve Reich was recently called  "our greatest living composer" (The New York Times), "America’s greatest living composer." (The Village VOICE), “...the most original musical thinker of our time” (The New Yorker) and “...among the great composers of the century” (The New York Times).. From his early taped speech pieces It's Gonna Rain (1965) and Come Out (1966) to his and video artist Beryl Korot’s digital video opera Three Tales (2002), Mr. Reich's path has embraced not only aspects of Western Classical music, but the structures, harmonies, and rhythms of non-Western and American vernacular music, particularly jazz. "There's just a handful of living composers who can legitimately claim to have altered the direction of musical history and Steve Reich is one of them," states The Guardian (London).

In celebration of his 75th birthday, Steve Reich's music will frame the Borealis 2011 program, with FMKV performing a version of his 'New York Counterpoint' on Tuesday the 22nd of March and Sindre Sætre and friends giving a public workshop and performance of 'Clapping Music' on Saturday the 26th of March.