Under its original title, Octet, the work was commissioned by the Hessischer Rundfunk (Radio Frankfurt) and completed in April 1979.
It was premiered at Radio Frankfurt on June 21, 1979, by members of the Netherlands Wind Ensemble, conducted by Reinbert de Leeuw (Reich 2002, 98).
Reich rescored it in 1983 to make performance easier, by adding a second string quartet, and retitling the work Eight Lines.
The composer regarded this as a perfectly ordinary option, while pointing out "whether there are eight, nine, or ten performers, the piece is always musically an octet" (Reich 2002, 98).
The woodwinds and strings play fragmented versions of these figures in unison with the pianos, as well as melodies of their own and slow drones in the background.