Steve Reich to Turn 90 With Worldwide Celebrations and Premiere of New Work
In All Your Ways will launch an international tour across Europe, North America, and Asia.
Across Europe, the UK, North America, and Asia, leading ensembles, orchestras, presenters, and cultural institutions will honor composer Steve Reich's seven-decade career with performances spanning landmark early works to major late compositions. 2026 also marks the 50th anniversary of Reich's iconic Music for 18 Musicians, with major anniversary performances and immersive presentations highlighting the groundbreaking work's enduring impact.
At the center of the celebrations is In All Your Ways, an 18-minute work for large ensemble. Scored for Reich's signature ensemble of double flutes and clarinets, mallet percussion, two pianos, and string quartet, the new work receives its world premiere at the Edinburgh International Festival with the Colin Currie Group on August 28, launching an international tour with performances in Amsterdam's NTR ZaterdagMatinee series (Sep 19), Toronto's Soundstreams (Oct 6), Carnegie Hall (Oct 22), Cal Performances (Oct 24), the Barbican Centre (Oct 28), the Philharmonie de Paris (Nov 15), and with the Los Angeles Philharmonic (Mar 7), with additional performances to be announced. Performances of the work throughout the season feature many of the foremost interpreters of Reich's music, including the Colin Currie Group, Ensemble Signal, and Bang on a Can.
Reich's hometown of New York City anchors the anniversary celebrations with a series of major events in fall 2026. Carnegie Hall presents a 90th birthday concert on October 22 featuring Bang on a Can, Ensemble Signal, Lisa Kaplan, Nico Muhly, and Bryce Dessner in works spanning five decades, including the US premieres of In All Your Ways and Two Pianos. Meanwhile, the Park Avenue Armory marks the 50th anniversary of Music for 18 Musicians with an immersive production in the Drill Hall (Oct 14–18), bringing together three generations of Reich performers: the original Steve Reich Ensemble, Alarm Will Sound, and musicians from the Manhattan School of Music. The New York Philharmonic joins the celebrations with a “Sound On” presentation of Tehillim (Dec 8), featuring Synergy Vocals and conductor David Robertson, while The Juilliard School honors Reich, an alumnus, with a 90th birthday celebration on September 22.
In the UK, major cultural institutions present a wide range of Reich's music. The Southbank Centre opens its fall season with performances of Different Trains (in a version for string orchestra) and Triple Quartet with the Solem Quartet, alongside City Life (London Sinfonietta) and Music for 18 Musicians (Para Orchestra). In February, the Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Santtu-Matias Rouvali, performs The Desert Music. The Schwarzman Centre in Oxford presents a “Steve Reich in Focus” series (Sep 25-30), exploring works such as Drumming, Music for 18 Musicians, and Different Trains through spatial audio projects with the Ligeti Quartet and sound designers Loss>Oct 2–4), curated by Colin Currie and hosted by Tom Service, with performances of Drumming, Music for 18 Musicians, The Desert Music, and more by the Colin Currie Group, Bryce Dessner, Royal Northern Sinfonia, and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. The Barbican in London is host to multiple Reich concerts, including The Desert Music with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, an all-Reich program with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Susanna Mälkki (also touring to Paris), and an intergenerational performance of Music for 18 Musicians with students from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.
Elsewhere, the Munich Philharmonic (Nov 1) will present chamber works including Music for Pieces of Wood, Pendulum Music, Drumming, Part I, and Six Marimbas. The Philharmonie de Paris hosts a multi-day focus (Nov 12-15) featuring dance collaborations and chamber performances with the Colin Currie Group. In Canada, Soundstreams presents the North American premiere of In All Your Ways, alongside a special presentation of Clapping Music that features a filmed performance by Reich paired with a live performance by Russell Hartenberger. The Los Angeles Philharmonic, conducted by Brad Lubman, offers an all-Reich program including the West Coast premiere of In All Your Ways and the US premiere of a new orchestral arrangement of Reich's Proverb by Anna Clyne, created as a birthday tribute.
The anniversary season also includes major recording projects. In October 2026, Deutsche Grammophon reissues Drumming by Steve Reich and Musicians as part of its acclaimed “Original Source Series.” Originally recorded in Hamburg in 1974, the landmark three-LP set—featuring Drumming, Six Pianos, and Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices and Organ—has been newly mastered from the original four-track tapes by Rainer Maillard and Sidney C. Meyer at Emil Berliner Studios, and includes original artwork, archival materials, photographs, and new essays on the recording and restoration process.
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