In C - Wikipedia
In C is a musical piece composed by Terry Riley in 1964 for an indefinite number of performers. He suggests "a group of about 35 is desired if possible but smaller or larger groups will work".[ 1] A series of short melodic fragments that can be repeated at the discretion of musicians, In C is often cited as the first minimalist composition to make a significant impact on the public consciousness.[ 2]
The piece was first performed by Steve Reich, Jon Gibson, Pauline Oliveros, Stuart Dempster, Morton Subotnick and others at the San Francisco Tape Music Center.[ 3] [ 4] It received its first recorded release in 1968 on CBS Records. Subsequent performances have been recorded many times since.
In 2022, the 1968 LP recording of In C was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the United States National Recording Registry as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.".[ 5]
In C consists of 53 short numbered musical phrases, lasting from half a beat to 32 beats, and having from one note to twenty-five. Performers are expected to play the first phrase once in unison, after which each performer may repeat the phrase or move on to the next. Each phrase may be repeated an arbitrary number of times at the discretion of each musician in the ensemble. Each musician is expected to use the same tempo, as led by "the pulse" on piano or pitched percussion (such as xylophone or marimba) but otherwise the performers have control over which phrase they play and how many times it is repeated. Performers are encouraged to play the phrases starting at different times, even if they are playing the same phrase. In this way, although the melodic content of each part is predetermined, In C has elements of aleatoric music to it and each performance will be different from others.[ 6] The performance directions state that the musical ensemble should try to stay within two to three phrases of each other. The phrases must be played in order, although some may be skipped. The first musician to reach the final numbered phrase repeats it indefinitely until all other musicians reach the same phrase, at which point they all crescendo and gradually stop playing until only "the pulse" remains and then goes silent.
