Today SXSW released its list of the next batch of performers for this year’s edition. It’s the biggest announcement yet with plenty of noteworthy names on the list, one of the most intriguing of them being Max Richter. The British composer, who among many other accomplishments has written several excellent film and television scores, (shout out to The Leftovers, one of the best things to ever be on TV) will be presenting the North American debut of his 8 hour composition Sleep. A more manageable 10 minute excerpt is presented below.
I don’t really have a clear notion of how such a piece would even work at SouthBy, where set lengths of 20-40 minutes are the norm, but I am intrigued. Maybe it will be more of an installation piece where people would be free to come and go and those that are up for it and have the stamina could stay for the duration, but who knows? Regardless of what form it takes though, this promises to be one of the more unique and interesting bits of programming for this year’s festival.