Steve Reich (b. 1936), composer of Radio Rewrite
Musical inspiration rarely travels in a straight line. Sometimes it comes full circle, as it did when legendary American composer Steve Reich (b. 1936) discovered that one of the world's most innovative rock bands had been influenced by his music… and then found himself inspired by theirs.
Reich is widely considered a pioneer of minimalism, a musical style built around repeating patterns, shifting rhythms, and gradual transformations. His influence extends far beyond classical music, shaping generations of electronic musicians, producers, and rock artists, including the British band Radiohead. The band's layered textures, hypnotic rhythms, and fascination with repetition share a clear connection with Reich's musical language.
That connection became personal in 2010, when Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood performed Reich's Electric Counterpoint at a music festival in Kraków, Poland. Greenwood, himself an accomplished classical composer, had painstakingly recorded the work's multiple guitar parts, performing the remaining part live. Reich was impressed, and their meeting prompted him to explore Radiohead's music.
Two songs immediately caught his attention: Everything in Its Right Place, from Radiohead's 2000 album Kid A, and Jigsaw Falling into Place, from 2007's In Rainbows. Their harmonies, rhythms, and melodic fragments became the foundation for Radio Rewrite, completed in 2012 and premiered by the London Sinfonietta in 2013.
Rather than simply arranging Radiohead's songs for classical instruments, Reich took them apart and reimagined their musical DNA. Written for flute, clarinet, two vibraphones, two pianos, string quartet, and electric bass, the approximately 19-minute work unfolds in five connected movements. The energetic first, third, and fifth movements draw from Jigsaw Falling into Place, while the more reflective second and fourth movements take inspiration from Everything in Its Right Place.
Listeners familiar with Radiohead may occasionally recognize a harmonic progression or melodic gesture, but much of the source material is transformed beyond immediate recognition. Reich's signature interlocking rhythms and gradually evolving patterns turn these fragments into something entirely new.
What makes Radio Rewrite particularly fascinating is this exchange of musical ideas across generations and genres. Radiohead absorbed elements of Reich's musical vocabulary, developed them into their own distinctive sound, and ultimately inspired Reich to explore new creative territory. The result is neither classical music imitating rock nor rock music dressed up for the concert hall. It's a musical conversation between artists who, despite their different backgrounds, discovered they were speaking much the same language.