When Steve Reich walked into the giant marble ballroom at Capitale for the Kitchen’s annual spring gala, the dim interior of the old bank building was cheered only by twinkling little screens set at each dinner table. As we approached, walking next to the guest of honor, we could better make out these electronic rectangles through the tie-clad crowd. But we weren't sure what they were until we sat down. They were iPads, three or four to a table, and they were all synced to play performances of works by Steve Reich and the other honoree, video artist Joan Jonas.
Reich’s works make good dinner companions: The endless repetition inherent in his work struck us as a fine analog to gala season, with its the non-stop parade of finger food and little forks.
“I’m working on a piece now called ‘Radio Rewrite,’ which is a rewrite in my own terms of two songs from Radiohead: ‘Everything Is In Its Right Place’ and the other one is from the ‘In Rainbows’ album, ‘Jigsaw Falling Into Place,’” the composer told ARTINFO. “You may or may not recognize the tunes in my pieces, you sort of encounter them now and then and then they’ll disappear. It’s my piece.”
He went on about his friendship with Radiohead guitarist Johnny Greenwood, and walked off to his table. He was about to be introduced.
“One day, Steve walked into my office and said, ‘I’ve heard you don’t like minimalism,’” Nonesuch Records President Bob Hurwitz said, standing on stage. “And then he said, ‘Well, neither do I!’” Hurwitz went on to compare Reich to Beethoven (not a minimalist), and invited him up.
“Steve will never stand there alone when his musicians are onstage, so this is rare,” Hurwitz said.
We stayed for Jonas’ speech and the spirited performance by David Cossin of Bang on a Can, but there was still time before the afterparty, so we decided to stop by the Lincoln Center Institute Junior Spring Benefit, just up the street at the Bowery Hotel. Young members of the board — budding socialites in Diane Von Furstenberg dresses or power ties, all smiles and handshakes — milled about with cocktails or smoked on the patio. Others paid respects to this scene's queen bee Zoe Kazan, the actress and Hollywood royalty who’s dating Paul Dano.
Soon we left the young and moneyed set to amble back down the Bowery to Capitale, and when we arrived the old patrons of the Kitchen had been replaced by its new ones. Twenty-something gallery assistants spilled out onto the steps, passing out cigarettes to their friends, and the place was packed with people dancing. Inside, James Murphy was DJing, so we stopped by to say hello.
“I just got over bronchitis, so you might want to wash that,” he said after giving us a handshake. “Use alcohol — the 1935 version of sterilizing!”
Then we clinked our vodka and sodas, which would not be the night’s last, for either of us.
“Hold on,” he said. “ I gotta change the record.”