- Playing
- by chance, a tribute to John Cage
- From
- Ed Herrmann
A short tribute to John Cage. Some would argue he's the most influential composer of the 20th Century. Or that no musician has ever had such a profound effect on the other arts. Or suffered as much ridicule. Certainly John Cage opened up a lot of ears and remains controversial.
The controversy centers on two of Cage's ideas. First, the notion that any sound can be considered music. That is, any sound can be used in music, or can be heard as music simply through the act of listening.
The second idea is the use of chance operations. This is often linked to Cage's interest in Zen Buddhism, and is explained as an attempt to create music without the interference of personal preferences and expectations. But how does this work? If you're going to write a piece of music, you need to end up with a score that has words, notes, graphics, or some kind of indication as to what the performer is supposed to do. So where does this come from if you as composer don't make any choices?
This piece explores the process of creating a piece through chance operations by explaining the process and then doing it, resulting in 2 1/2 minutes of chance determined radio.More from Ed Herrmann
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Piece Description
A short tribute to John Cage. Some would argue he's the most influential composer of the 20th Century. Or that no musician has ever had such a profound effect on the other arts. Or suffered as much ridicule. Certainly John Cage opened up a lot of ears and remains controversial.
The controversy centers on two of Cage's ideas. First, the notion that any sound can be considered music. That is, any sound can be used in music, or can be heard as music simply through the act of listening.
The second idea is the use of chance operations. This is often linked to Cage's interest in Zen Buddhism, and is explained as an attempt to create music without the interference of personal preferences and expectations. But how does this work? If you're going to write a piece of music, you need to end up with a score that has words, notes, graphics, or some kind of indication as to what the performer is supposed to do. So where does this come from if you as composer don't make any choices?
This piece explores the process of creating a piece through chance operations by explaining the process and then doing it, resulting in 2 1/2 minutes of chance determined radio.Transcript
Discussing John Cage invites superlatives. Some would argue that he's the most influential composer of the 20th Century. Or that no musician has ever had such a profound effect on the other arts. Or suffered as much ridicule. Certainly John Cage opened up a lot of ears and remains controversial.
The controversy centers on two of Cage's ideas. First, the notion that any sound can be considered music. That is, any sound can be used in music, or can be heard as music simply through the act of listening.
The second idea that detractors find baffling is the use of chance operations. This is often linked to Cage's interest in Zen Buddhism, and is explained as an attempt to create music without the interference of personal preferences and expectations. But how does this work? If you're going to write a piece of music, you need to end up with a score that has words, notes, graphics, or some k...
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