represented by

(clockwise from back left) Micaela Haslam, Amanda Morrison, Heather Cairncross, Amy Haworth

"I was very privileged on this occasion to be promoted to Director of London Sinfonietta for a week. Having rehearsed and performed Music for 18 Musicians countless times over a period of 12 years (mostly with Steve Reich playing piano 4), I know the piece inside out, and David Hockings (principal percussion) needed assistance in putting the piece together. Often Music for 18 Musicians is played with 19 or 20 musicians, but London Sinfonietta were to perform the piece with the smallest possible number i.e. 18. This scenario involves some fairly complicated choreography - mallet players swapping instruments; players taking over from each other mid-pulse; pianists swapping to marimbas & maracas, and one of the singers playing piano. It's like a giant sudoku puzzle!

I had a meeting with the percussionists then left them to practise their choreography. My next concern was to have a get-together with the principal clarinettist who gives so many of the cues during the piece. I arranged to meet Tim Lines before the first tutti rehearsal, to talk through the cues. Each one has to be given (usually by way of a look and a nod whilst playing) to a particular player or singer. In addition, there are a couple of crucial places where the cue involves standing up so that it is visible to the entire ensemble. We talked quickly through the clarinet part, making a note of which cue went to whom, then I barely gave any more notes to the clarinets for the rest of the week. Tim just got it. It was as though he'd been playing the piece for years - amazing!

Tim and Andy (clarinets), John Alley (piano 3), Shelagh & Tim (piano 4), Adrian (marimba 3) with Mandy & Jenny on vocals

We had a wonderful team of players to work with. Shelagh Sutherland did sterling work on marimba 3 when she wasn't playing piano 4, as did our own Mandy Morrison on piano 4 when she wasn't singing soprano 2. We took the versatility two steps further than usual when Amy Haworth (soprano 1) played cello for one rehearsal when Lionel was unavailable. In addition, we'd asked Jenny Bacon to come along to sing though the soprano 1 part in preparation for our Tokyo trip. So Amy swapped over to my part (sop 3 on this occasion) while I listened to the rehearsal.

Ian Dearden from Sound Intermedia did a marvellous mixing job. Every instrument/voice is amplified. In addition, as there is no conductor, every player needs their own monitor in order to keep in touch with the rest of the ensemble. What goes into each monitor varies from player to player, so a very patient and able sound engineer is essential. Ian was marvellous, as always.

During rehearsals, there were a few frustrations about speed. I tried to explain that there is no "speed" as such (apart from the initial tempo, which doesn't have to be exactly the same every time). Each of the 11 sections of the piece has a slightly different character, and to a large extent, you just have to "feel" the tempo, however vague that may sound. Of course, when you're not familiar with a piece, you have to be somewhat mechanical to start with, but then you have to let go and listen. The "groovy" bits of the piece tend to slow down, which is fine, but then you have to imagine the following section at the same speed. If it feels too slow, then there are various key players and moments when the tempo can be given a gentle nudge. Ade Spillett (who also did the Perth Drumming date with us) and John Alley both had some key tempo moments. In the end, we devised a system whereby if I smiled at them the tempo would stay as it was, and if I nodded they would give the speed a little helping hand. It worked a treat, and the performance was fabulous!

Jackie & Lionel (vln & cello), John Constable (piano 1), Clive (piano 2 - and mean maracas), David (xylo), Alex and Neil (marimba), with Heather & Amy on vocals

I think this was the first time that a professional UK ensemble has performed Music for 18 with 18 musicians, so it was an important event. I was delighted to see how much the players enjoyed the piece. The freedom that comes with not having a conductor also gives rise to a stronger sense of responsibility and ownership of the performance. I hope all the players were proud as I was, and I hope that this Music for 18 with London Sinfonietta will be the first of many."