Steve Reich festival review – Colin Currie and the Hallé ease into the groove | Classical music
Back in the 1980s, Steve Reich abandoned writing for symphony orchestra, disheartened by conductors and classical musicians who simply didn’t get his uniquely challenging vibe. The opening concert in the Hallé’s three-day Reich mini festival was a chance to hear both 1985’s The Desert Music – the work that broke the camel’s back, so to speak – and 2018’s Music for Ensemble and Orchestra, the octogenarian composer’s bounce-back piece, encouraged by a new generation brought up on his intricate rhythms and distinctive sound…