Page 314 - (DK) The Classical Music Book - Big Ideas Simply Explained
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ONCE YOU BECOME AN
ISM, WHAT YOU’RE
DOING IS DEAD
IN C (1964), TERRY RILEY
n 1950s’ America, a generation a new set of materials, including
IN CONTEXT of artists, such as Donald sound “samples” recorded on
I Judd, Richard Serra, and magnetic tape and played
FOCUS Frank Stella, championed a new on a repeated “loop.”
Minimalism
kind of minimalist art. Inspired
BEFORE partly by Piet Mondrian and Breaking new ground
1893 Erik Satie composes other artists of the Dutch De Stijl In C was the work in which Terry
“Vexations,” a piano piece that movement founded in 1917, it Riley defined the musical style that
is widely recognized as being relied on plain, often industrial, became known as minimalism. It
a forerunner of minimalism. materials and was free of any features a steady pulse, gradual
explicit meaning or influence. In transformation, and the repetition
1958 La Monte Young writes music, too, American composers, of short phrases or musical cells,
his Trio for Strings, considered including La Monte Young, Steve focusing the attention, not on a
to be the original work of Reich, and Terry Riley, looked to goal toward which the music is
musical minimalism. strip notation, instrumentation, progressing, but on a continuous
and rhythm to their barest process of change.
1960–1962 In Mescalin Mix, essentials. To this they added Riley did not begin with the
Riley develops the technique aim of writing a “minimalist” piece.
of repetitions using tape delay. In C emerged partly from his
AFTER experimentation with tape loops,
1967–1968 Philip Glass writes particularly when he collaborated
a succession of minimalist with trumpeter Chet Baker on the
pieces, including Gradus (for In C is revolutionary. music for a theatre production,
called The Gift, in Paris in 1963. He
solo saxophone) and 1 + 1 It introduces repetition recorded Baker and his musicians
(for amplified tabletop). as a primary then made loops from the tapes and
constructive force into
1971 The Who’s song “Baba Western music. played them back simultaneously
O’Riley,” dedicated to Terry Robert Davidson but starting at different times so
Riley, opens with a keyboard Composer and student of Riley they repeated out of sync.
riff inspired by trademark In C uses a similar technique
minimalist repetition. but with live players rather than
tapes. The piece consists of 53
musical phases of varying length
(none longer than 32 beats) that
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