Major works of Steve Reich reimagined in full 360° spatial audio for the very first time

In celebration of the 90th birthday of the pioneering American composer Steve Reich, Oxford University’s Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities has announced a new immersive spatial audio experience, Steve Reich: Phase | Pattern | Pulse, as part of a wider event series Steve Reich in Focus, from 25 September – 11 October.

Brought to life by spatial audio designers Loss><Gain and world-leading Reich exponents,  British percussion ensemble Colin Currie Group, the boundary-pushing spatial audio experience reveals the richness, complexity and ever-evolving beauty of Reich’s music as never before. Across three distinct immersive audio programmes: 1/ Music For 18 Musicians, 2/ Drumming, 3/ Sextet + Six Marimbas + Double Sextet,  Phase | Pattern | Pulse offers an exploded 360° insider’s view of some of the 20th century’s most innovative, influential and admired compositions, revealing the inner structures of each piece in fresh and startling detail.

The Phase | Pattern | Pulse sensory experience is completed with lighting design from award-winning lighting designer Ed Warren, who has worked with the likes of Four Tet, Interpol, Nia Archives, Michael Kiwanuka and many more.

Premiering in this format in the Schwarzman Centre’s Black Box, a flexible performance space designed for research and experimentation, this momentous occasion invites audiences to experience Reich’s work in a wholly unique way and honour the genre-spanning legacy of this master of minimalism that has inspired generations of composers and artists including Brian Eno, Laurie Anderson, Richie Hawtin, Aphex Twin, Bjork, Nobukazu Takemura, Meredith Monk, Carsten Nicolai aka Alva Noto, and so many more.

Following Sigur Rós’ sell-out ÁRA experience, the Black Box’s first major immersive listening experience, Phase | Pattern | Pulse continues the Schwarzman Centre’s collaboration with Loss><Gain in exploring the possibilities of spatial sound. With infrastructure for an immersive sound system using up to 128 ‘sound objects’ in space, the Black Box provides advanced spatial audio capabilities that enable immersive sound experiences like never before.

Loss><Gain brings their long experience of producing cutting edge sound installations and deep listening experiences with artists including Max Richter, Jon Hopkins, Anna Meredith, Public Service Broadcasting, Hannah Peel, Cosmo Sheldrake, and more into a collaboration with the propulsive musicianship of Colin Currie Group, whose performances are widely regarded as technically impeccable and urgent, and, by Steve Reich himself, as the finest to be had anywhere.

Tickets are now available to book HERE

by Decoded Magazine

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