Percussion music represents an important strand in the output of minimalist composer
Steve Reich
, and this release by the ensemble
Third Coast Percussion
, whose members cheerfully admit they weren't even born when
Reich
first came on the scene, shows how the genre has continued to interest him. The works involved span several decades, from
Music for Pieces of Wood
(1973) to 2009's
Mallet Quartet
. It's notable that
's language, unlike those of his minimalist-pioneer compatriots, hasn't fundamentally changed during this period. Instead, he explores percussion-defined spaces and processes in different ways. The
Nagoya Marimbas
(1996) receives a performance that, in the words of the players, "blends the characteristic
marimba sound with an expressive, nuanced approach to dynamic shaping"; the upshot seems to be a reading that lands toward the communicative end of the spectrum of
performances.
, one of the original works in which
transferred his electronic phase-process discoveries to the realm of live musicians, remains as entrancing as it was 43 years before this album was released. With crack modern players who have new wrinkles to contribute, this is a fine survey of
's percussion music, released in 2016 and a fitting tribute in the composer's 80th-birthday year. ~ James Manheim