“Steve Reich Collected Works” Box Set Out Now on Nonesuch
Nonesuch Record’s newly released Steve Reich Collected Works box set spans 60 years of Reich’s music, from early tape works to first recordings of recently premiered scores.
Nonesuch Records has released Steve Reich Collected Works, a 27-disc box set featuring music recorded during composer Steve Reich's 40 years on the label. This collection spans six decades of Reich’s compositions, from It’s Gonna Rain (1965) to first recordings of his latest works: Jacob’s Ladder (2023) and Traveler’s Prayer (2020).
The box set includes two extensive booklets featuring new essays by longtime Nonesuch President Robert Hurwitz, conductor Michael Tilson Thomas, percussionist Russell Hartenberger (Steve Reich and Musicians), producer Judith Sherman, and composer Nico Muhly. A comprehensive listener’s guide by pianist and composer Timo Andres is also included.
Premiere recordings of Jacob’s Ladder and Traveler’s Prayer
The world premiere recording of _Jacob’s Ladde_r, performed by the New York Philharmonic under Jaap van Zweden with Synergy Vocals, was captured live at Lincoln Center’s David Geffen Hall in October 2023. The New York Classical Review praised it as “lovely and refreshing ... superb.”
The premiere recording of Traveler’s Prayer, performed by Colin Currie Group and Synergy Vocals, was made at Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall, also in 2023. “The tone of its score, from first note to last, is sustained sublimity,” says the Los Angeles Times.
Steve Reich provides exclusive commentary on seven works from the box set, including Jacob’s Ladder and Traveler’s Prayer, in a Track-by-Track feature available on Apple Music Classical.
> Steve Reich: Track by Track on Apple Music Classical
Reich’s Legacy with Nonesuch
Nonesuch made its first record with Steve Reich in 1985. He was signed exclusively to the label that year, and since then the company has released 22 all-Reich albums, two retrospectives, and two remix releases.?Among his many honors, two of Reich’s Nonesuch records, Different Trains and Music for 18 Musicians, won GRAMMY Awards and his Double Sextet recording for the label won a Pulitzer Prize.
While Nonesuch recordings comprise 24 of the 27 discs in Collected Works, the set also includes recordings licensed from other labels: Mahan Esfahani’s recording of Piano Phase (Deutsche Grammophon); Ensemble Avantgarde’s recording of Pendulum Music (Wergo); Art Murphy, Jon Gibson, Steve Chambers, Philip Glass, and Steve Reich’s recording of Four Organs and Murphy, Gibson, Chambers, and Reich’s recording of Phase Patterns (Shandar); Andreas Hartmann and Waltraut Wächter’s recording of Duet with MDR-Sinfonieorchester led by Kristjan Järvi (Sony Classical); Steve Reich and Musicians’ recordings of Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices and Organ and Six Pianos (Deutsche Grammophon); San Francisco Symphony and conductor Edo de Waart’s recording of Variations for Winds, Strings and Keyboards (Philips); Ransom Wilson’s recording of Vermont Counterpoint (Angel); and Ensemble Signal’s recording of Music for 18 Musicians (Harmonia Mundi).
This landmark release offers an unparalleled opportunity to experience the full scope of Steve Reich’s groundbreaking career.
Photo: Courtesy of Nonesuch Records