Silence book john cage

This is a classic book of writings by john cage, mostly about music and art. Snyder interviewed cage, wrote the first doctoral thesis on him in 1970, contributed the cage timeline to richard kostelanetzs monograph, john cage, authored several other works on the composer, and was the dedicatee of cages piece, one. Silence is a collection of some of the essays and lectures that have made john cage s name synonymous with all that is unpredictable and exciting in contemporary miusic. My first encounter with the book in the local public library resulted in my renewing it repeatedly. Often these writings include mesostics and essays created by subjecting the work of other writers to. The son of an inventor, cage briefly attended pomona college and then traveled. In these lectures, scores, and writings, cage tries, as he says, to find a way of writing that comes from ideas, is not about them, but that produces them. Trawling through cage s writings and examining the score and performance of the piece, gann elaborately reconstructs the genesis of 433 in the hope of making a case for it as a serious, galvanising work. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and nonstandard use of musical instruments, cage was one of the leading figures of the postwar avantgarde.

In this concise survey, gann, a composer and music critic, examines john cages famously noteless composition 433 from origins to afterlife. John cage, a leading figure of the american musical avantgarde and lecturer and writer extraordinary, dedicated himself to the search for new horizons in musical composition. The audience at the world premiere was prepared to listen to this piece divided into three movements. The intervening fourandabit decades have done little to diminish its many charms. A year with john cage how to get out of the cage documentary, 2012 duration. Cage possesses one of the rarest qualities of the true creator that of an original mind and whether that originality pleases, irritates, amuses or outrages is irrelevant. T he theories of avantgarde american composer john cage 19121992 on music, sound, and silence are of more interest than his musical compositions. John cage s 433 is a solemn justification for what many at the time and since perceived as a prank or a hoax. When composer john cage wrote 433 four minutes, thirtythree seconds, it would become his most famous and controversial piece. Deceptive cadence watch and hear a handful of clips that form an introduction to the master provocateurs work. John cage 1912 1992 was an american composer, music theorist, writer, philosopher and provocative artist. The line, probably john cage s most famous statement, appears three times over in his book silence, which wesleyan university press has reissued in a smart fiftieth anniversary edition that also coincides with the centenary of the authors birth. Lectures and writings, 50th anniversary edition by.

Music is a succession of sounds and the composer the organizer of sounds. You will notice that my book descriptions are not generic, saying may have. In silence, he explains a lot of the techniques he used when composing, and discusses the value and meaning of music. John cage is the outstanding composer of avantgarde music today. John cage at the university of illinois, 195269, 1999. This detailed literature summary also contains topics for discussion and a free quiz on silence.

Nuova versione john cage silence book pdf aggiornata. If youre familiar with cages ideas, youll want to read these texts, some of which can be a bit offputting by their form. Pianist david tudor walked out on stage on august 29, 1952, in woodstock, ny, sat down at the piano and closed the lid. This is a great book in a very beautiful and minimalistic edition. First performed at the midpoint of the twentieth century, john cages 433, a composition conceived of without a single musical note, is among the most celebrated and ballyhooed cultural gestures in the history of modern music. John cage has 91 books on goodreads with 18225 ratings. These are extracts from the 50th anniversary edition of silence.

Silence, john cage s first book and epic masterpiece, was published in october 1961. If youre familiar with cage s ideas, youll want to read these texts, some of which can be a bit offputting by their form. Lectures and writings is a book by american experimental composer john cage 19121992, first published in 1961 by wesleyan university press. John cages books published by wesleyan are, silence.

John cage meets 2020 operatic installation of soundscape and film. In this concise survey, gann, a composer and music critic, examines john cage s famously noteless composition 433 from origins to afterlife. As kay larson explains in her excellent, lucid and newly published book where the heart beats. In this book, kyle gann, one of the nations leading music critics, explains 433 as a unique moment in american culture and musical composition. Cage was also an author, and his book saenee was described by john rock well in the new york times as the most influential conduit of oriental thought and religious ideas into the artistic vanguardnot just in music but in dance, art and poetry as well. Silence is a collection of some of the essays and lectures that have made john cages name synonymous with all that is unpredictable and exciting in contemporary miusic. He published silence in 1961, which included lectures and writings from the period 19391958. Used book, white with lots of typed words on front. The line, probably john cages most famous statement, appears three times over in his book silence, which wesleyan university press has reissued in a smart.

The notion of silence or as cage philosophizes, the lack thereof has informed both my thinking and my playing. I framed a copy of the score and it hangs in my house. Historically, music has been a communication of feelings, but cage argues that all sounds have this potential for conveying. Dec 15, 2010 a performance by william marx of john cage s 433. First performed at the midpoint of the twentieth century, john cages433, a composition conceived of without a single musical note, is among the most celebrated and ballyhooed cultural gestures in the history of modern music. John cages 433 is a solemn justification for what many at the time and since perceived as a prank or a hoax. John cage opened my mind to the importance of listening hearing what is not there, the space between sound, and how silence is the backdrop which gives sound the time and space to. Snyder interviewed cage, wrote the first doctoral thesis on him in 1970, contributed the cage timeline to richard kostelanetzs monograph, john cage, authored several other works on the composer, and was the dedicatee of cage s piece, one. He lucidly catalogues the specifically american mix of influences duchamp, zen, erik satie, thoreau, robert rauschenberg that fed.

Cage possesses one of the rarest qualities of the true. Silence, a year from monday, m, empty words and x in this order form the. John cage, 433, performed by william marx cage continued to develop his theories on silence and chance events throughout his voluminous body of work well into his eighties, influencing many contemporary musicians along the waytoru takemitsu, philip glass and steve reich to name but a few. The line, probably john cages most famous statement, appears three times over in his book silence, which wesleyan university press has reissued in a smart fiftieth anniversary edition that also coincides with the centenary of the authors birth. John cage opened my mind to the importance of listening hearing what is not there, the space between sound, and how silence is the backdrop which gives sound the time and space to exist. May 15, 2015 when composer john cage wrote 433 four minutes, thirtythree seconds, it would become his most famous and controversial piece.

Corners bumped, binding strong, pages clean and unmarked. In these lectures, scores, and writings, cage tries, as he. September 5, 1912 august 12, 1992 was an american composer, music theorist, artist, and philosopher. In his book walden henry thoreau removes himself from lifes distractions and lives in a cabin by a pond. What john cage offers is more refreshing, more spirited, much more funa. This collection of essays and presentations by noted composer and musical innovator john cage attempts to capture on paper both the intellectual and stylistic creativity with which he approached his work. Lectures and writings by john cage wesleyan university press, 1961.

Trawling through cages writings and examining the score and performance of the piece, gann elaborately reconstructs the genesis of 433 in the hope of making a case for it as a serious, galvanising work. The page numbers in brackets in the introduction to each extract refer to that book. John adams, in his memoir hallelujah junction, describes how a reading of cages 1961 book silence encouraged him to drop out of east coast academia, pack his belongings into a vw. John cage silence lectures and writings, 50th anniversary. Pianist david tudor walked out on stage on august 29, 1952, in woodstock, ny, sat down at the piano and.

If youre familiar with cages ideas, youll want to read these texts, some of. Silence is a collection of essays and lectures cage wrote during the period from 1939 to 1961. A meditation on the act of listening and the nature of performance, cages controversial piece became the iconic statement of the meaning of silence in. I have been looking for a book titled silence for a long time and do not know the. Indeed, it is almost impossible to overstate the artistic and cultural importance of cage. The story of 433 cage s intense musical composition consists of a pianist sitting at a piano and playing nothing. A meditation on the act of listening and the nature of performance, cages controversial piece became the iconic statement of the meaning of silence in art and is a landmark work of american music. Silence, john cages first book and epic masterpiece, was published in october 1961. Silence, his 1961 collection of essays, manifestoes and wry anecdotes, proved to be one of the most widely read and influential texts ever.