Ictus & Suzanne Vega
Einstein On The Beach
The Philip Glass album Einstein on the Beach, performed by Suzanne Vega, Ictus, and the Collegium Vocale Gent choir. Released by Belgian label VLEK, known for electronic and experimental music the album expands the catalogue for the first time to include composed music. Einstein on the Beach, undoubtedly the most popular of all anti-operas from the second half of the 20th century, premiered in 1976 at the Avignon Festival, directed by Bob Wilson with choreography by Lucinda Childs. The production was a huge success and made theater history. It is interesting to note that in the same year Steve Reich composed his masterpiece Music for Eighteen Musicians. Thus, 1976 can be seen as a pivotal year when minimalist music left the underground scene and its aura of conceptual radicalism behind to reach a broad audience with enduring success.