Nonesuch Records to release Steve Reich Collected Works

The collection represents six decades of Reich’s compositions, ranging from It’s Gonna Rain (1965) to first recordings of his two latest works: Jacob’s Ladder (2023) and Traveler’s Prayer (2020). Two extensive booklets contain new essays by longtime Nonesuch President Robert Hurwitz, conductor Michael Tilson Thomas, Steve Reich and Musicians percussionist Russell Hartenberger, producer Judith Sherman, and composer Nico Muhly, as well as a comprehensive listener’s guide by pianist and composer Timo Andres.

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 honours, 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.

The 27-disc box set 'Steve Reich Collected Works'—music recorded during the composer's 40 years on the label—is due March 14 on Nonesuch, available to pre-order at https://t.co/419VFhvvXu pic.twitter.com/l0BdcffkoQ

— Steve Reich (@SteveReich) December 11, 2024

“I first heard Music for 18 Musicians when I was in my mid-twenties, at a moment when I was still in the process of figuring out my own taste in contemporary music. I wasn’t yet certain what modern classical music really meant, nor was I sure how it stacked up against work from the past.” Hurwitz says in his liner note.

“Music for 18 Musicians was an event of such immense importance that it changed how I felt not only about Steve, but about minimalism, modernism and, in some respects, classical music. Music for 18 was a piece that could sweep listeners up with its non-stop kinetic activity, its opulent sound, its rhythmic invention, its stunning architecture. But only years later did I recognize what drew me in to such an intense degree: it was harmony.