Steve Reich & the Colin Currie Group, Queen Elizabeth Hall

This autumn, the South Bank Centre will be alive with the sounds of drums, marimbas, vibraphones and the human body. Metal, Wood, Skin is the complex’s first festival of percussion. At the heart of the season is a concert of four works by Steve Reich and the Colin Currie Group. 

The night opens with the classic Clapping Music (1972), a piece formed entirely of handclaps. The composer himself will join Currie for the performance. The other works – Sextet for percussion & keyboards, Mallet Quartet and the world premiere of Quartet for 2 vibraphones and 2 pianos – have been chosen to highlight Reich’s long-standing engagement with tuned percussion instruments. This will be a fun, polychrome riot of a concert. 

Colin Currie is, according to Steve Reich, “one of the greatest musicians working in the world today.” Currie is renowned for his physicality, musicality and precision, deploying everything from bird-whistles and bull-roarers to Burmese gongs with grace and flair. An advocate for new music and a tireless promoter of musical education, he has become the percussionist of choice for numerous composers. His performance of Reich’s Music for 18 Musicians was a highlight of last year’s Rest is Noise Season at the South Bank. This year’s concert looks to be no different.