Art is one of life’s mixed blessings in that it has the somewhat cursed quality of affecting each of us in our own way. Just because a piece of music doesn’t satisfy one person’s musical palate does not mean that it will not satisfy another’s. Some people love red onions. I prefer them in small quantities and as a flourish to the main course. 

Steve Reich’s “Music for 18 Musicians” is one of those pieces well suited for those with an acquired taste for modernity. As a whole, the piece is an exploration of 11 chords. This, it accomplishes rather well. In a manner somewhat reminiscent of young children trying out instruments for the first time, Reich somehow manages to create an alien form of musicality that doesn’t seem possible but yet comes alive under the skillful leadership of the musicians involved. 

Friday’s concert at the Sarasota Opera House was held on the actual 50th anniversary of the composition’s premiere at The Town Hall in New York City. Rather than the original 18 musicians, there were actually 20 involved in this presentation by the contemporary classical music group ensembleNEWSRQ, necessitated by the fact that some of the parts are so specific to the performers for whom they were written they require constant switching between two instruments.

In the beginning, there is a beautiful moment of breath rolling through the music like waves crashing on the shore. Yet, while this moment repeats a few times throughout the piece, it is too often replaced by monotonous repetition strongly reminiscent of the screensavers utilized by early 2000’s Microsoft computers. This was emphasized by the microphones being turned up way too much; in my experience, one’s ears should not ring at the conclusion of a piece. 

Normally, I would not find it necessary to criticize an audience as part of a review of a musical performance; however, the sheer amount of audible chatter I heard within the opera house made me wonder whether this commentary was part of the program. It is hardly the first time I have observed this unwelcome phenomenon at Sarasota concerts. How have we become so comfortable disrespecting not only the others in the room, but the artists who work so hard to share their talents with us? If those of us who are financially compensated to share our opinions can save them until the performance has concluded surely so can everyone else. 

All of this said, the 55-minute length makes this a tremendous feat for the musicians. Those who may not enjoy the constant throbbing of the music may find joy, as I did, in observing one of the finest examples I have ever seen of extraordinary musicianship and focus. The constant pulsing in the piano and xylophones left the observer shocked that the players’ arms do not simply fall off at the end of the piece. The downright human skill it takes to play at this level – to repeat phrases identically, to maintain the intensity of the tempo, to sound electronic when everything is actually acoustic – is a powerful argument against the use of AI in art.

As a musician I’m positive that, like most drum circles I’ve been a part of, Reich’s work is a thousand times more fun to play than to listen to. After all, there are not too many pieces out there that can provide as much of a challenge and a ride for the artist involved as this one clearly does. It is obvious how much work went into this performance. My lack of taste for the music does not in any way devalue its worth as music, the quality of the performance or the response of the audience – especially if the standing ovation was any indication.