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Exploring Clapping Music

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Like impressionism, minimalism was originally a style in art before it became a type of music. Minimalist
art is a type of art in which objects are stripped down to their basic geometric form and presented in an
impersonal manner. It is an abstract style of art. When the term “minimal” is used in music, it means
compositions that are created with the most basic and limited amount of material.

Minimalist music draws on several features from different types and styles of music - including those from
African music of the Burundi region and Gamelan music from Bali in Indonesia - such as repetition, cyclic
rhythms and polyrhythms.

Minimalism began in America in the 1960’s where composers were looking for new an innovative ways to
create music. The three main minimalist composers are Terry Riley, Steve Reich and Philip Glass

The main feature of minimalist music is a limited number of short melodic, rhythmic and harmonic
patterns called MOTIFS. These motifs form the basis of minimalist music and are often repeated again and
again before being changed ever so slightly in some way.

One way of changing a motif is to “move” it so that it becomes “out of time” or “out of sync” with the
original motif and this is called a PHASE SHIFT. Phase shifting and repetition of these motifs often give the
music a hypnotic effect.

Steve Reich composed “Clapping Music for Two Performers” in 1972. Reich wanted to perform a piece
needing only the human body and decided to use the sound of a human clap as a basis for his piece.
“Clapping Music” uses just one rhythmic motif. One person plays this motif all the time while the other
displaces this motif by one beat and repeats this new pattern 12 times – an example of PHASE SHIFTING.

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Listen to an extract from “Clapping Music” and answer the questions.

1. What happens to the pulse in the music? Does it speed up, slow down or stay the same?

2. How can you tell when one of the performers changes their rhythmic motif and begins to clap a
new one?

3. What effect does this have on the music?

4. What do you think of this piece of music? Is it really “music” at all?

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Performing “Clapping Music”

(Steve Reich)

1        

1        
2        
3        
4        
5        
6        
7        
8        
9        
10        
11        
12        
13        

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Composing Clapping
Music
Names of people in our group

Working in groups, create your own piece of “Clapping Music”. You will be using the same minimalist
composition techniques that Steve Reich uses in his “Clapping Music”:
 MOTIF
 REPETITION
 PHASE SHIFT

Stage 1: Begin by composing your MOTIF and record it in the rhythm grid below. Your MOTIF will be made
up of 12 beats, but only choose some of the beats to clap on, leaving the others as RESTS.

Use REPETITION to clap your MOTIF over and over, repeating it until everyone in your group is confident at
performing it.

Stage 2: Once you have your MOTIF, create a pattern by displacing your motif using PHASE SHIFT by one
beat at a time – forwards or backwards: it is up to you! Record these PHASE SHIFTS in the boxes below.

1
2
3
4
5
6

Stage 3: Divide into two groups. One group claps the motif, while the others work through the other lines,
either clapping one an agreed number of times or using an agreed ‘signal’.

Stage 4: Compose and create a suitable ending or CODA to your “Clapping Music”.

Stage 5: Rehearse and perform your own “Clapping Music” until everyone in your group is confident.

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Stretch and Challenge: Instead of using RHYTHM GRID

NOTATION (as above), can you write out your “Clapping
Music” using QUAVERS (‘beam together’ quavers that are
next to each other), QUAVER RESTS and REPEAT
SYMBOLS using SINGLE LINE RHYTHM NOTATION?

Evaluating “Clapping
Music”

Name Form

Listen to performances of your classes “Clapping Music” compositions. As you listen, evaluate the
compositions by putting completing the table below.

Group Did the group Did the group How could you Describe the How effective
start by maintain a hear the group ending or CODA was the SCORE
establishing steady PULSE using PHASE to this piece. of this groups
their MOTIF? throughout? SHIFT? “Clapping
Music”?

1
Yes Yes, but some Has a clear and A repetition of Rhythmic and
beats got simple shift the beginning lively
2 confused for
the performers
Yes Yes, though I I can recognise Continues to Complex and
believe it was a the shift but I shift and full of variation,
bit messy think change of lively
3 sometimes tempo
“less is more” it
can be simpler.
Yes There are more The rhythm A repetition of Quite steady,
4 people in this after the shift the beginning some beat
group meaning wasn’t steady, mixing up, it is
it requires a but I can understandable
well-arranged recognise it for a large
role and control group
of beat, this

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group’s beat
wasn’t really
clear
Yes Slower Clear shift, full All the group Slow and calm
tempo=more of texture members
time to reunite
5 react=less
mistake
clapping the
same rhythm.
maintaining the
pulse
Yes Try to seek for Notice on the Repetition of slow
6 the tempo and
rhythm
combination of
different roles
the beginning

Yes Sometimes the The different I can recognise slow

performers are rhythm of the 2 a mistake
confused with performers during the
7 the beat didn’t combine CODA,
together really
well
Yes Sometimes the Beats not Slow and soft
performer can’t combined well
follow the beat
8 and pulse
throughout
resulting
mistakes

Now think about your own group’s “Clapping Music” composition.

1. What would you have improved in your own group’s performance? Don’t get confused with the

2. What, if anything, would you do differently next time? Create a more complex CODA, and variation of
tempo.

3. In your opinion, which was the best “Clapping Music” composition and why? I think the best group is G5,
due to the reason that they fulfilled the criteria above, and I like the way the reunite during the CODA.

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