Clapping Music
Encyclopedia
Clapping Music is a minimalist
piece written by Steve Reich
in 1972. It is written for two performers and is performed entirely by clapping
.
A development of the phasing
technique from Reich's earlier works such as Piano Phase
, it was written when Reich wanted to (in his own words) "create a piece of music that needed no instruments beyond the human body". However, he quickly found that the mechanism of phasing slowly in and out of tempo
with each other was inappropriate for the simple clapping involved in producing the actual sounds that made the music.
Instead of phasing, one performer claps a basic rhythm
, a variation of the fundamental African bell pattern
in 12/8 time, for the entirety of the piece. The other claps the same pattern, but after every 8 or 12 bars s/he shifts by one eighth note to the left.
The two performers continue this until the second performer has shifted 12 eighth notes and is hence playing the pattern in unison
with the first performer again (as at the beginning), some 144 bars later. The variation of the African bell pattern is minimal; it contains just one additional beat. However, this minimal addition results in a much more interesting piece from the point of view of the variation of syncopation as the piece progresses.
In Reich's 1974 book Writings on Music there is a picture of the piece being performed at the Contemporary Arts Museum
in Houston, Texas
on 13 November 1973.
Minimalist music
Minimal music is a style of music associated with the work of American composers La Monte Young, Terry Riley, Steve Reich, and Philip Glass. It originated in the New York Downtown scene of the 1960s and was initially viewed as a form of experimental music called the New York Hypnotic School....
piece written by Steve Reich
Steve Reich
Stephen Michael "Steve" Reich is an American composer who together with La Monte Young, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass is a pioneering composer of minimal music...
in 1972. It is written for two performers and is performed entirely by clapping
Clapping
A clap is the sound made by striking together two flat surfaces, as in the body parts of humans or animals. Humans clap with the palms of their hands, often in a constant drone to express appreciation or approval , but also in rhythm to match sounds in music and dance...
.
A development of the phasing
Phasing
In the compositional technique phasing, the same part is played on two musical instruments, in steady but not identical tempo...
technique from Reich's earlier works such as Piano Phase
Piano Phase
Piano Phase is a piece of music written in 1967 by the minimalist composer Steve Reich for two pianos. It is his first attempt at applying his "phasing" technique, which he had previously used in the tape pieces It's Gonna Rain and Come Out , to live performance.Reich's phasing works generally...
, it was written when Reich wanted to (in his own words) "create a piece of music that needed no instruments beyond the human body". However, he quickly found that the mechanism of phasing slowly in and out of tempo
Tempo
In musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
with each other was inappropriate for the simple clapping involved in producing the actual sounds that made the music.
Instead of phasing, one performer claps a basic rhythm
Rhythm
Rhythm may be generally defined as a "movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions." This general meaning of regular recurrence or pattern in time may be applied to a wide variety of cyclical natural phenomena having a periodicity or...
, a variation of the fundamental African bell pattern
Bell pattern
A bell pattern is a rhythmic pattern, often a key pattern , performed on metal bells such as an agogô, gankoqui, cowbell or similar percussion instruments such as the metal shell of the timbales or drum kit cymbal.-sub-Saharan African music:The use of iron bells in sub-Saharan African music is...
in 12/8 time, for the entirety of the piece. The other claps the same pattern, but after every 8 or 12 bars s/he shifts by one eighth note to the left.
The two performers continue this until the second performer has shifted 12 eighth notes and is hence playing the pattern in unison
Unison
In music, the word unison can be applied in more than one way. In general terms, it may refer to two notes sounding the same pitch, often but not always at the same time; or to the same musical voice being sounded by several voices or instruments together, either at the same pitch or at a distance...
with the first performer again (as at the beginning), some 144 bars later. The variation of the African bell pattern is minimal; it contains just one additional beat. However, this minimal addition results in a much more interesting piece from the point of view of the variation of syncopation as the piece progresses.
In Reich's 1974 book Writings on Music there is a picture of the piece being performed at the Contemporary Arts Museum
Houston Museum District
The Houston Museum District commonly known as, “The Museum District,” is an association of museums, galleries, cultural centers and community organizations located in Houston, Texas, dedicated to promoting the arts, sciences, and cultural amenities of the area.The Houston Museum District currently...
in Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
on 13 November 1973.