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Steve Reich’s “It’s Gonna Rain (Part I)” (1968)

 

In the following I tried to write down what I really heard. While listening to Reich’s piece again at home, I noticed the following patterns. I tried to distinguish the patters which additionally always repeated themselves several times. The individual patters are divided by a semicolon. The comma sections of the parts of one pattern. The parts overlay each other – sometimes in a form of a canon or a changing rhythm. I was able to distinguish those parts by the auditory output of my device. I am not quite sure how this technically works but played from my laptop one part of a pattern sounded as if it was coming from the left and another one from the right.

Pattern It’s Gonna Rain Part I (0:00 – 7:59):

Start Speech; It’s Gonna Rain; It’s Go; o Rain; r Go; It’s Go; It’s; o Rain; Rain; O Rain; T’s Go; It’s Go; Rain; It’s Gonna Rain; It’s Go Rain; It’s Gonna Rain; It’s Gonna Rain, It’s Gonna Rain (Canon); It’s Gonna Rain, Rain; It’s Gonna Rain, Rain; It’s Gonna, Rain Rain; It’s Gonna, Rain; It’s Gonna Rain, It’s Gonna Rain; Rain It’s Gonna; Rain It’s Gonna; It’s Gonna Rain, Rain It’s Gonna (juxtaposed but same rhythm); It’s Gonna Rain, It’s Gonna; It’s Gonna Rain; It’s Gonna Rain; Speech: It’s gonna rain after all;

            As stated beforehand, my brain somehow tries to translate what I receive auditory into a visual image. Although the context of the piece is rather serious as the speeches used were about the Cuban Missile Crisis at that time, I want to try to describe again how my mind translates the extensive sounds into something I am able to comprehend. This piece reminds me of trying to solve a rubix cube without touching and just thinking about those endless possibilities. Thinking about systemically trying every single combination before doing so. Changing only one single square of color by shifting the complete row and going on turning and rotating without finding a solution and an end of the process. This thought alone also reminds me of spinning anxiety thoughts, not to mention how it feels to go round in circles in one’s own thoughts obsessing over a specific and uncertain outcome.

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