In C

For the album by Acid Mothers Temple & The Melting Paraiso U.F.O., see In C (album).

Riley's 1968 LP recording of In C as part of the CBS Records "Music of our Time" series

In C is a musical piece composed by Terry Riley in 1964. It consists of series of 53 short melodic fragments that can be repeated at the discretion of the musicians. It is often cited as the first minimalist composition to make a significant impact on the public consciousness and inspire a new movement. ^[1] The number of performers is unspecified. Riley suggests "a group of about 35 is desired if possible but smaller or larger groups will work". ^[2]

The piece was premiered on November 4 and 6, 1964, by Riley, 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 Columbia Records, where the full score for the piece was included on the sleeve.

In C was inspired by Riley's previous work with tape loops and delay, as well by his interest in group improvisation which he has been developing since 1957-58, alongside his fellow students Loren Rush and Pauline Oliveros. The piece has been recorded by a wide range of musicians, and went on to inspire many other minimalist composers like Philip Glass, Steve Reich, John Adams, Julius Eastman, etc. ^[5]

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". ^[6]

Technique

In C uses an open score and an aleatoric approach. It 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. ^[7] 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.

As detailed in some editions of the score, it is customary for one musician ("traditionally... a beautiful girl," Riley notes in the score) ^{[8] [ citation needed ]} to play the note C in repeated eighth notes, typically on a piano or pitched-percussion instrument (e.g. marimba). This functions as a metronome and is referred to as "The Pulse". Steve Reich introduced the idea of a rhythmic pulse to Riley, who accepted it, thus radically altering the original composition by Riley which had no pre-determined rhythm. ^[9]

Program notes from first UK performance, May 1968

In C has no set duration; performances can last as little as fifteen minutes or as long as several hours, although Riley indicates "performances normally average between 45 minutes and an hour and a half." The number of performers may also vary between any two performances. The original recording of the piece was created by 11 musicians (although, through overdubbing, several dozen instruments were utilized), while a performance in 2006 at the Walt Disney Concert Hall featured 124 musicians.

The piece begins on a C major chord (patterns one through seven) with a strong emphasis on the mediant E and the entrance of the note F which begins a series of slow progressions to other chords suggesting a few subtle and ambiguous changes of key, the last pattern being an alternation between B♭ and G. Though the polyphonic interplay of the various patterns against each other and themselves at different rhythmic displacements is of primary interest, the piece may be considered heterophonic.

The first UK performance of In C was on 18 May 1968 at Royal Institute Galleries by the Music Now Ensemble directed by Cornelius Cardew as part of a series of four Music Now, Sounds of Discovery Concerts, during May 1968. ^{[10] [11]}

Recordings

The piece has been recorded a number of times:

Artist	Instrumentation	Duration	Tempo (♩=)	Recording information	Release information
Terry Riley and Center of Creative and Performing Arts (SUNY-Buffalo)	saxophone, oboe, bassoon, trumpet, clarinet, flute, viola, trombone, vibraphone, marimbaphone	42' 03"	132	March 27–28, 1968 (many overdubs)	Columbia MS 7178 (LP); Sony SNYC 45368 (Re-mastered)
L'Infonie	saxophones, trumpets, percussion, piano, guitar, bass guitar, trombones	29' 20"	104	Recorded in 1970	Volume 33: Mantra (LP); Reed Streams / In C, Cortical Foundation Corti 2
Ensemble Percussione Ricerca	vibes, glockenspiel, marimbas, xylophone, crotales	41' 01"	116	Diamine Studio, Mestre-Venezia, Italy, in 1983	In C / Djembé, Materiali Sonori
Shanghai Film Orchestra	traditional Chinese instruments ("various lutes, zithers, mouth organs, flute, and percussion")	28' 35"	108	Recorded in January 1989 at the Recording Studio of the Shanghai Film Industry. Mixed by Terry Riley, Jon Hassell and Brian Eno	Celestial Harmonies 13026
Piano Circus	concert grand piano, upright piano, Rhodes piano, harpsichords, vibraphone	20' 00"	132	Recorded in 1990	Six Pianos / In C, Argo 430380
Terry Riley and Friends	saxophones (sopranos, alto, tenor, and baritone), xylophone, synthesizers, voices, flute, viola, violins, trombones, cello, piano, guitars, glockenspiel, drums, marimba, clarinet, accordion, xylophone, bass clarinet	76' 16"	108	Recorded live on January 14, 1990, at the New Music Theatre and Life on the Water, San Francisco	In C – 25th Anniversary Concert, New Albion 71
Quebec Contemporary Music Society	flute, oboe, English horn, clarinet, bassoon, French horns, trumpets, trombone, tuba, harp, percussion, sitar, tablas, violins, viola, cello, double bass, vocal ensemble	35' 46"	116	Recorded live on June 12, 1997, at the Salle Pierre-Mercure	Atma Classique 22251
Ictus (with Blindman Kwartet)	percussion, double basses, harp, cello, guitar, piano, accordion, oboe, violin, clarinets, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, baritone saxophone	65' 00"	130	Recorded live on May 31, 1997, at Chapelle des Brigitines, Brussels. Slightly overdubbed at Acoustic Recording Studio, Brussels	Cypres 5601
Bang on a Can	cello, glockenspiel, vibraphone, bass, mandolin, soprano saxophone, pipa, piano, violin, electric guitar, chimes, marimba, clarinet	45' 32"	120	Recorded live on November 20, 1998, at the World Financial Center, New York	Cantaloupe 21004
Terry Riley Repetitition [sic] Orchestra	keyboards, clarinet, trumpet, violins, cello, fretless baritone guitar, double bass, chime-bells, percussion, voices	76' 40"	108	Recorded live on April 20, 2000, in DOM, Moscow	Long Arm Records 01033
The Styrenes	guitars, keyboards, bass, drums, vibraphone	53' 19"	120	Recorded on September 21, 2000, at Unique Studio, NYC (many overdubs)	Enja 94352
Acid Mothers Temple & the Melting Paraiso U.F.O	voices, monster bass, electric guitars, synthesizers, drums, violin, zuruna, tambura, shruti box, vibraphone, glockenspiel	20' 31"	92	Recorded at FTF Studio, Indo-yo and Acid Mothers Temple, 2002	Squealer 37
European Music Project, zignorii++	violin, viola, violoncello, marimba, electric piano, English horn, clarinets, alto saxophone, electronic arrangements	60' 48"	120	Recorded April 19–22, 2001, at Sendesaal des Funkhauses Köln	Wergo 66502
re-sound	flute, clarinet, soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, voice, electric guitar, electric bass, percussion, keyboards, violin, cello	57' 00"		Recorded in Australia	Move Records MD 3262 [12] (2002)
DésAccordes / d-zAkord	classical guitars, electric guitars, electric basses, harp, cellos, percussion, drums, bass	48' 54"	120	Recorded on November 23, 2003, at Espace Culturel du Bois Fleuri, Lormont, France	MUSEA/GAZUL GA8681.AR
Ut Gret	synthesizer, alto saxophone, vibes, marimba, flute, bass clarinet	64' 11"	120	Recorded live at Tewligans in 2002	Recent Fossils, Ear-X-tacy Records
Ars Nova Copenhagen, Percurama Percussion Ensemble	vocals, marimbas, bass marimba, vibraphone, Bali gong	55' 16"	116	Recorded on January 17, 2005, at Focus Recording, Copenhagen	Dacapo 8.226049
American Festival of Microtonal Music	just-fretted guitars, viola, harpsichord, kanon, guitar "pulse"	23' 11"	112	Recorded live as "In C in Just Intonation," Terry Riley's reworking commissioned by the AFMM in 1988	Ear Gardens, Pitch P-200209
Oxford Minimalist Ensemble		45' 09"		Recorded live at Sheldonian Theatre Oxford UK on 11 May 2006	www.minimalistensemble.co.uk
The New Audience Ensemble		16' 36"			Live at the Edge, Odessa Mama (2006)
Jeroen van Veen	Piano and other keyboards	57' 56"	120	Recorded at Barbara Church, Culemborg on October 23–28, 2006 (many overdubs)	Minimal Piano Collection, Brilliant Classics 8551
GVSU New Music Ensemble	piano, percussion, xylophone, bassoon, accordion, flute, bass flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, cello, English horn, soprano and tenor saxophones, marimba, vibraphone, guitar, trumpet, violin	20' 43"		The project included remixed versions by 16 other musicians,	In C Remixed, Innova 758 (2009)
Orkest de Volharding		51' 36"	108		The Minimalists, Mode 214/215 (2009)
Hans Balmer	Flutes (overdubbed)	40' 04"	124		Minimal Flute, Fontastix (2009)
Salt Lake Electric Ensemble	Laptop orchestra with percussion	65' 56"	85	Laptops recorded live February 3, 2010, in Salt Lake City, acoustic instruments overdubbed Feb/Mar 2010	sleearts.com (2010)
GVSU New Music Ensemble	Piano, Percussion, Flute, Cello, Accordion, Violin, Clarinet, Bass, Saxophone, Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Trumpet. Featured Guest Dennis DeSantis on laptop and effects.	61' 28"	124	Recorded live on November 8, 2009, at Le Poisson Rouge, New York City	Terry Riley: In C Ghostly International GI-108 (2010) Limited Edition CD + Digital Download
Invisible Polytechnic	Analogue modular synth 'pulse', organ, piano, marimba, percussion, violin, viola, hurdy-gurdy, harp, bass guitar, oboe, daegeum, bassoon, voices	45' 40"	115	Recorded at Hatchlands Park, Surrey, and Them Usem, London	Junior Aspirin Records (ASP020, 2011)
Anton Glushkin and friends	Piano 'pulse', guitar, electric guitar, 2 violins, viola, cello, balalayka, balalayka-contrabass, flute, clarinet, bassoon, French horn, bayan, harp, harpsichord, synthesizer, percussion	51'	110	Recorded live on March 17, 2012, at museum of contemporary arts "Erarta", St. Petersburg, Russia	Hands For Friends studio
The Sensorium Saxophone Orchestra	Bass, Baritone, Tenor, Alto and Soprano Saxophones, with Snare Drum Pulse	35'	110	Recorded December 2010 at Creative Music Studios, Brooklyn, New York	Living Records (2012)
Theatre of New Music	Flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, string quintet, accordion, electric guitar, synthesizer, piano, percussion, academic vocals, folk vocals	25'	120	Performed on March 18, 2013 at the Saratov State Conservatory at the concert performance "Station In C"	Video recording of the first public performance in Saratov
University of Lethbridge Electroacoustic Ensemble	clarinet, alto saxophones, voices, electronic bells, DTX electronic drums, MIDI sequencer, CDJ-2000 turntable, iPad, piano, Minimoog Voyager, microKorg XL, keyboards, acoustic guitars, electric guitar, bass guitar (Ableton Suite and Logic Pro controlled by iPad and keyboards)	41'13"	96	Lethbridge, Canada, April 2013	Digital Audio Arts University of Lethbridge
PressingPlay laptop Orchestra	Ableton Live 8, APC40, Kore 2	23'52"	128	June 2013	Recorded live at PlonkPlonk Records in June 2013
Adrian Utley's Guitar Orchestra	Electric Guitars, Organs, Bass Clarinet, Percussion	61'24"		Recorded live at St. George's hall, Bristol, 6 February 2013	Released by Invada Records on 14 October 2013
Haanwijk Guitaret Ensemble	21 Hohner Guitarets	19'47"			Released April 2014
Africa Express	balafons, baritone-guitar, calabash, djembe, flutes, guitars, imzad, kalimbas, kamel n'goni, koras, melodica, percussions, violin, vocals	40'45"	130	Recorded at Maison des Jeunes, Bamako and Studio P5, Berlin	Released February 2015; titled In C Mali . Features Brian Eno and Damon Albarn. [13]
Fighting Windmills + Sethstat	clarinet, soprano saxophone, trombone, percussion, electronic percussion, analogue synthesizer, modeling synthesizer, electric guitar, electronics, bass guitar, contrabass	78'41"	(variable)	Performed without pulse in a varying, free-flowing tempo. Recorded live at Kino Frosina, MKC – Skopje, Macedonia, December 16, 2016.	Released by PMG Jazz on July 5, 2018
dBs Music	Synthesizer Orchestra	53'50"	85	Recorded at dBs Bristol	Performed December 2018 [14]
Selfie Orchestra and Friends	strings quintet, piano, guitar, bass, mezzo-soprano, accordion, electronics	66'10"	93.75	Recorded live at Onerkhana Performing Arts Theatre (Almaty, Kazakhstan)	Performed June 24, 2021 [15]
The Young Gods	electronics, guitar, voice, drums and percussions	51'59"		Recorded live at the "Studio des Forces Motrices", Geneva, Switzerland, 21 October 2021	Released 9 September 2022 [16]
Icebox Project Space	50+ Participants	52'	70	Recorded live at Icebox Project Space to be Broadcast on Philadelphia's WKDU 91.7 by Allison Durham	Performed on January 9, 2025 [17]

Impact on other music

Grand Valley State University New Music Ensemble produced an album of remixed versions of In C. A discussion of the In C remixing project including music played from three of the remixed versions can be heard in Radiolab's podcast on In C from December 14, 2009. ^[18] The remixers included Jad Abumrad, Mason Bates, Jack Dangers, Dennis DeSantis, R. Luke DuBois, Mikael Karlsson/Rob Stephenson, Zoë Keating, Phil Kline, Kleerup, Glenn Kotche, David Lang, Michael Lowenstern, Paul D. Miller (DJ Spooky), Nico Muhly, Todd Reynolds and Daniel Bernard Roumain (DBR). ^[19]

References

1. Christopher Bonds, The Musical Impulse, second, revised edition (Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall Hunt Publishing Company, 1994): 345. ISBN   9780840398024
2. Riley, Terry, "In C: Performing Directions", from the score for In C, 1989, Celestial Harmonies
3. "A guide to Terry Riley's music" by Tom Service, The Guardian , 29 January 2013
4. "Radio Eclectus: Stuart Dempster interviewed by Michael Schell", April 9, 2020
5. "'In C' Forever: The eternal evolution of Terry Riley's minimalist masterpiece".
6. "National Recording Registry Inducts Music from Alicia Keys, Ricky Martin, Journey and More in 2022". Library of Congress. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
7. Honigmann, David (October 7, 2013). "In C, Barbican, London – review" . Financial Times. Archived from the original on 2022-12-10. Retrieved 2014-07-28. In C – probably the second-best-known aleatory classic – is less a score than a set of instructions
8. This direction seems to be in the original score, but is not in the OtherMinds CC-licensed score.
9. Andrew Ford (May 6, 2012). "Steve Reich – rhythm and minimalism". The Music Show. ABC Radio National. Archived from the original on 2021-12-09. Retrieved 2014-08-07– via YouTube. Steve Reich turned his back on Serialism back in the late 60s. He'd heard John Coltrane's free jazz and following a trip to Ghana in the early 70s he decided rhythm was more important than melody. So Minimalism was born in uptown New York.
10. Programme for the Cornelius Cardew Ensemble, Royal Institute Galleries. (1968)
11. Anderson, Virginia (18 November 2013). "Systems and Other Minimalism in Britain". In The Ashgate Research Companion to Minimalist and Postminimalist Music, ed. Keith Potter, Kyle Gann, and Pwyll ap Siôn. Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate.
12. Move Records MD 3262 re-sound: In C
13. Clark, Philip. "Riley In C". Gramophone .
14. "VIDEO: A day recording with Portishead's Adrian Utley at DBS Music".
15. Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine : "In C by Terry Riley". YouTube . 28 June 2021.
16. "In C". The Young Gods. 9 September 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
17. "A Performance of: Terry Riley's "In C"". TicketLeap. Retrieved 2025-01-11.
18. Radiolab, "In C", December 14, 2009
19. "In C Remixed". GVSU New Music Ensemble. Retrieved 26 February 2014.

Further reading

• Carl, Robert. 2009. Terry Riley's in C. Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-532528-7 doi : 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195325287.001.0001
• Reed, S. Alexander. 2011. "In C on Its Own Terms: A Statistical and Historical View". Perspectives of New Music 49, no. 1 (Winter): 47–78. doi : 10.7757/persnewmusi.49.1.0047