Analyzing Sextet By Steve Reich

 Written by Trevor Wong

Sextet, Steve Reich

Performed by Yale Percussion Group

https://youtu.be/YgX85tZf1ts

Steve Reich’s Sextet, is an exciting minimalist composition consisting of five movements and six performers. In this paper, I will note a number of observations and commentary on Reich’s use of harmony, rhythm, and form. My goal will be to articulate a description of the broad musical aspects used in the composition. 

Beginning with harmony, Reich’s vocabulary sounds relatively diatonic with a preference towards major chord sounds. Particularly, this piece seems to rely heavily on dominant chord voicings which are spread out across multiple octaves. Moreover, it seems to me that additional extensions are added into the sound to create an open, suspended aesthetic. At the same time, there seems to be relatively few chord, and key changes, meaning a tonal centre is easily established for the listener. If anything, this music seems to harmonically resemble something like modal jazz (though without improvisation). 

Beyond chord qualities, Reich has some very distinct features in his melodies. Overall, these seem to be mostly chordal, and are difficult to sing or memorize. Beyond this, there’s a limited number of pitches at any given time, and Reich’s melodies will often utilize large leaps. For example, this tends to occur at the end of his lines to create a punctuated effect (see the line at roughly 5:33). Moreover, In terms of how he’s arranged these melodies, Reich seems to use lines based around interval patterns, and arpeggiations. The resultant effect is a textured layer where the melodic contour of his lines modulates between lower and higher pitches. This creates a “wave” like aesthetic that is reminiscent of computerized sounds. Outside of using single note content, Reich will also use block chord sounds that are played in the middle octave range. 

In terms of rhythm, Reich is dynamic and relies heavily on repeating ostinato’s, angular phrases, odd meters, rhythmic counterpoint, and imitation. For example, ostinato’s are present in almost every single movement of the work. Often, a section will be grounded by an ostinato with variation and counterpoint occurring over top to create a textural effect. Moreover, angular rhythms manifest through his usage of three against two, African bell patterns, and meters such at 5/8 and 6/8. Overall, Reich’s music is heavily driven by rhythm, and could be characterized as percussive ‘groove’ music due to steadily present pulses, repetition, and contrasting syncopated material. 

Looking at form, arrangement, and orchestration, this is the most definitive aspect of Reich’s music. As said before on rhythm, Sextet is heavily organized around repeating ostinatos. What Reich tends to do is present a central ostinato which is accompanied by a slow introduction of different layers. For example, the first movement of the piece slowly evolves over top of a steady, pulsating keyboard line. As the music progresses, Reich weaves in marimba melodies, piano, and bowed mallet instruments. He continues to introduce and develop sounds until the section naturally runs its course.

In broad terms, the compositional style is based on the exploration and development of contrasting ‘vignettes’ of sound. Particularly, we’ll see the development and transformation of one idea, which is then countered by a change to another vignette which features a different ostinato, texture, rhythm, or overall orchestration. For example, this concept can be heard in  the juxtaposition of music around 9:18, to the music at 10:30. In the section at 9:18, the music is dense, as most players are contributing sound. Moreover, there is frequent counterpoint, and a general lack of space, or silence. Conversely, at 10:30 this section offers significant contrast due to increased space (as in there are less rhythmic durations, pitches, and a greater use of silence), the removal of ostinato, and a shift from contrapuntal to unison texture. This trend of development and contrast continues throughout the song, and in some sense, although this piece is minimalistic, it could be viewed as quite progressive as the concept of contrast is a recurring theme in the piece. 

Finally, building off of recurring themes, these can be extended to many (if not all) of the previously discussed compositional features. For example, this is especially clear through rhythmic motifs such as (obviously) repetition, African bell patterns, the three against two pattern, and recurring rhythmic phrases and templates. These weave in and out of the overall piece, and are reintroduced to give some sense of cohesion to the overall work.

In conclusion, at its core, Sextet is an evolving piece of music that prioritizes repetition, consonant harmony, and rhythm, in order to create a piece that is highly coherent while also unique and challenging for both listener and performer.