TThe Colin Currie Quartet was formed in 2018 to present exciting and adventurous works written for percussion quartet. The group is made up of Colin Currie, Owen Gunnell, Adrian Spillett and Sam Walton, who form the core of the Colin Currie Group, and in this new collective they perform works by Steve Reich and branch out into other composers who have been swept along by that highly influential force.
As some of the world’s leading solo, symphonic and chamber percussionists, each player of the quartet brings a different and insightful slant to the art of chamber percussion performance, and the group will be adding substantially to its repertoire in the coming years, including a dramatic piece for four drumkits by Julia Wolfe and a new quartet by British composer Dave Maric.
In their debut season, 2018/19, they performed at the NCPA Beijing, Wigmore Hall, Norfolk & Norwich Festival, Dublin’s Great Music in Irish Houses and East Neuk Festival in Scotland.
Click here to watch the Quartet's trailer.
Programme, 2020/21
Joseph Pereira Mallet Quartet
Steve Reich Mallet Quartet
Julia Wolfe Dark Full Ride
Interval
Dave Maric Nascent Forms
Steve Reich Drumming (Part 1)
Programme, 2018/19 & 2019/20
Joseph Pereira Mallet Quartet
Xenakis Rebonds B
Stockhausen Vibra-Elufa
Steve Reich Mallet Quartet
Interval
Kevin Volans Four Marimbas
Steve Reich Drumming (Part 1)
“It's not possible to play this piece more vibrantly and precisely than these four did."
Arts Desk, July 2018
The Colin Currie Group is a flexible ensemble ranging from 4 to 30 musicians and can offer a wide range of programmes, often collaborating with Synergy Vocals. Below are some examples, which can be interchanged and adapted freely.
Programme 1 (12 musicians)
Reich Clapping Music
Reich Mallet Quartet
interval
Reich Drumming
Programme 2 (18 musicians)
Reich Music for Pieces of Wood
Reich Quartet (premiered 2014)
interval
Reich Music for 18 Musicians
Programme 3 (6 musicians)
Reich Clapping Music
Reich Sextet
interval
Reich Mallet Quartet
Reich Quartet (premiered 2014)
Programme 4 (6 musicians)
Reich Music for Pieces of Wood
Reich Mallet Quartet
interval
Reich Drumming [part 1]
Reich Six Marimbas
Programme 5 (13 musicians)
Reich Music for Pieces of Wood
Reich Music for Mallet Instruments, Voices and Organ
interval
Reich Drumming
Programme 6 (30 musicians)
Reich Tehillim
interval
Reich Drumming
Programme 7 (27 musicians)
Reich Variations for Vibes, Pianos and Strings
Reich Pulse
interval
Reich Music for 18 Musicians
Other repertoire the group can offer includes:
Reich Violin Phase
Reich Dance Patterns
Reich Cello Phase
Reich Piano Phase
Reich Proverb
Reich Radio Rewrite