Unique performance of Steve Reich - 1 musician on 2 pianos

Ive seen two people (each on their own piano) playing this piece. They had huge trouble keeping to their set pace, with the other performer beside them was so very hard to block them out in thier mind... because quite simply the other player is palying the very same passage just at different time. HOW THE HELL THIS GUY DOES IT BY HIMSELF ACROSS TWO PIANOS IS JUST MIND BLOWING... (my jaw is still on the floor.)

they show this to my class in school, It's bad ass!

that was fuckin siiick

Great performance !

Reich's music, along with other so-called minimalists, is a reaction to the extreme dissonance and controlled process of the serial composers of the 1950s/60s. His use of consonant harmonies and repetition makes available to the listener the process of the music and is an expansion in the revelation of form. It's not meant for casual consumption, but requires focus on the part of the listener. Without understanding that, appreciation of what's available is missed. AND, the performance rocks.

Wow...

I know it's not two time signatures... I know about phasing? Why are you directing this to me. I probably said maintaining two different timings. not time signatures.

This guy is not practicing a technique right now; he's playing a piece that was written. While there are certainly cerebral qualities to Reich's music, it's repetitiveness - without discernable and convenient hooks - requires making a different type of relationship to it as a listener.

That technique is actually not unique and was widely used by e.g. art-rock keyboardists.