The Ensemble Modern’s traversal of some of Reich’s less frequently heard scores provides a fascinating overview of the way his music changed during the 18 years that separate Violin Phase from City Life. While Different Trains (1988) seemed to many a breakthrough – a truly significant work of the 20th century – Reich’s subsequent works The Cave (1993) and City Life (1995) met with rather less enthusiastic reactions.

To be sure, there is a technical affinity between all three works, most notably that of sampling, but in City Life the sirens, street sounds and so forth that are associated with musical material that, in a sense, parodies them, seem more akin to a tourist guide to New York than anything more substantial. It must be said, too, that it is a beautifully written and, in many senses, a witty work (something that is caught wonderfully in the Ensemble Modern’s sharp-edged performance), but it leaves one adrift, without any clear idea of its purpose.

In contrast, the most focused work here, Violin Phase (1977), wears its purposefulness on its sleeve. Jagdish Mistry scintillates as the soloist, never letting go of the tension for a second, so when the end comes, you wait expectantly for that thread to be picked up again. Eight Lines, the reworked version of the Octet (1979/83) is also purposeful, moving gently from the early phase style to the melodic chanting-inspired style of the later Tehillim. While it is undeniably exciting, New York Counterpoint (1985) doesn’t quite have that edge-of-the-seat adrenalin-powered quality that one can feel so clearly in Violin Phase.

Drumming is from an even earlier period (1971), but it has lost none of its strength. The players of Ictus, already responsible for an astounding recording of Terry Riley’s In C (also on the Cyprès label) here put their hearts and souls into a work that demands ferocious concentration (though other approaches are possible – a composer friend once told me that it was quite the best music for building bookcases), and which rewards accordingly. Now, we know that nobody likes the label ‘minimalist’ any more, but with music of this quality it is very hard to find that description insulting. This performance is quite the equal of, and possibly more colourful than, Reich’s second version, on Nonesuch, and clearly outstrips the original, less trim DG version.

As for City Life, there seems to me to be no clear-cut reason to prefer one version over the other; the couplings will probably decide the matter – if you want unforgettable performances of Violin Phase and Eight Lines, the Ensemble Modern is the one to go for.