A film by painter Gerhard Richter inspires minimalist master Steve Reich’s cool and elegant piece, performed by the London Sinfonietta alongside the film.
Reich returns to his New York arts scene roots in this bright and rhythmically agile piece, written in 2019 to accompany Moving Picture (946-3), which Richter made with director Corinna Belz.
The film starts with a two-pixel pulsating, colour-shifting line, which becomes four pixels, then 16, then 32…
The music starts with a two-note oscillation that expands equally but then becomes liberated from the structure of the forms on film, allowing notes to escape and create their own destiny.
Music by two other masters of the New York scene complement Reich’s music, while the London Sinfonietta, with Sound Intermedia, recreate Nunu, its commission from the late and sadly missed Mira Calix.
