''Mallet Quartet'' is a composition by Steve Reich scored for two marimbas and two vibraphones, or for four marimbas. It was co-commissioned by the Amadinda Percussion Group, Amadinda Quartet in Budapest, on the occasion of its 25th anniversary, by Nexus (percussion ensemble), Nexus in Toronto, So Percussion in New York, and Synergy Percussion in Australia. It received its world premiere on December 6, 2009, at the Bela Bartók National Concert Hall in Hungary and its US premiere at Stanford University on January 9, 2010.
Structure
''Mallet Quartet'' is in three movements, with its entirety lasting around 14 minutes:
# ''Fast''
# ''Slow''
# ''Fast''
The second movement, ''slow'', is one of his most thinly textured works with acoustic music, acoustic instrumentation, as admitted by Steve Reich, Reich himself.
Performance
The piece can either be played with two marimbas and two vibraphones, or with four marimbas.
References
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Compositions by Steve Reich
Chamber music compositions
2009 compositions
Compositions for marimba