In both its arrangement of thematic material and use of tempi, the piece is in a characteristic arch form (ABCBA).
[1] The formation of the piece is explained by the composer as follows:[1] The title is taken from Dr. Williams’ book of collected poems, The Desert Music.
The orchestra calls for: There is also a reduced orchestration, prepared by Reich himself, for a chorus of 10 voices (3 sopranos, 3 altos, 2 tenors, 2 basses), accompanied by: No reductions are made in the percussion.
Also characteristic of several of Reich's pieces, such as New York Counterpoint, Electric Counterpoint, Sextet, Music for 18 Musicians, Three Movements for Orchestra, the exposition of the pulse is followed by pulsed notes in the choir and orchestra fading in and out over the course of a chord progression.
Also, the first movement prominently features a repeated rhythm found in several of the aforementioned works (in The Desert Music, however, the fourth and fifth note are tied together):