steve

In June 2016, Northwestern University's Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music announced that it is awarding Steve Reich its 2016 Michael Ludwig Nemmers Prize in Music Composition. Established in 2004, the Nemmers Prize honors classical music composers of outstanding achievement who have significantly influenced the field of composition.

Steve Reich was awarded an honorary doctorate from London's Royal College of Music at the venerable institution's Annual Awards ceremony on March 10, 2016. Reich, along with conductor Sir Roger Norrington and others, were among several internationally renowned musicians being honored by the RCM. Presenting the award was the College's President, His Royal Highness Prince Charles.

Steve Reich has been selected as the Richard and Barbara Debs Composer's Chair for Carnegie Hall's 2016–17 season. The Richard and Barbara Debs Composer's Chair is a position of distinction at Carnegie Hall. It is a testament to an artist's accomplishments and influence, and illuminates the oeuvre of the most renowned living composers.

In January 2015, Steve Reich and Stephen Sondheim sat down together on stage for the first time in their long careers to discuss the influence of their works and appreciation for each other’s music. The event, which was moderated by WNYC’s John Schaefer, took place at the Appel Room of Lincoln Center in New York City.

By the time the members of this impressive percussion ensemble joined forces in 2005, the composer Steve Reich was already a grandfather figure in the American new-music scene. So the percussionist Robert Dillon writes in the liner notes to this beguiling CD, his group's responsibility is "not to,document this repertoire - it no longer needs basic preservation - but rather to put our stamp on it."

New York City Ballet’s Fall 2015 Gala was an evening of contemporary dance and contemporary music. Always one of the most anticipated events of New York City’s culture scene, this year’s gala went above and beyond in all manner of choreography, costumes, and music. The performance included the world premiere of choreographer and dancer Justin Peck’s New Blood, set to Steve Reich’s Variations for Vibes, Pianos, and Strings.

In July 2015, Steve Reich’s Clapping Music was released on the on the iTunes App Store. Developed by Touchpress, the London Sinfonietta, and Queen Mary University of London, Steve Reich’s Clapping Music brings Reich’s seminal work, Clapping Music, to a digital platform, offering an interactive experience in learning and understanding rhythmic patterns.

“Even if more recordings are released next year to celebrate the 40th anniversary of this work, Steve Reich’s instant classic, none will likely be more sensational than this. Taped at Empac in Troy, N.Y., in 2011, the augmented players of the Ensemble Signal joyously meld rhythmic precision and transparency of sound with a startling ability to shade colors. It’s like hearing a ritual unfold and made radical once more.” —New York Times

The original 1998 Nonesuch recording of Music for 18 Musicians, which was released on CD and earned a Grammy Award for Best Small Ensemble Performance, has been reissued for a limited run of 4,000 copies on two 180-gram vinyl LPs.

In March 2015, Steve Reich was a guest speaker at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design. The talk included information about the conception and impetus for works such as WTC 9/11 and Different Trains. A discussion with Dean Mohsen Mostafavi and composer Hans Tutschku followed, centering around Reich’s musical output.