AN EVENING of JOHN CAGE's PERCUSSION MUSIC at the MUSEUM of MODERN ART Friday and Saturday, August 12 and 13, 7:30 P.M

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

AN EVENING of JOHN CAGE's PERCUSSION MUSIC at the MUSEUM of MODERN ART Friday and Saturday, August 12 and 13, 7:30 P.M For Immediate Release August 1988 AN EVENING OF JOHN CAGE'S PERCUSSION MUSIC AT THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART Friday and Saturday, August 12 and 13, 7:30 p.m. Percussion music of John Cage is featured in the seventh SUMMERGARDEN program. In 1943 Cage conducted his first New York concert at The Museum of Modern Art. Included on that program was the then recent composition Amores--a suite of four pieces, two for the "prepared piano," which Cage invented, and two for percussion trio--and Credo in Us, which had been commissioned by Merce Cunningham. These two compositions will be heard in the all-Cage program on August 12 and 13. The complete program is as follows: John Cage, Credo in Us (1942) Second Construction (1940) Quartet (1935) Amores (1943) (in four movements) Inlets (1977) Imaginary Landscape No. 2 (1942) Among the more unusual instruments used in this program are: radio or phonograph (Credo in Us); tuned sleigh bells, wind glass, and thunder sheet (Second Construction); twelve conch shells, with a pre-recorded tape of burning - more - Friday and Saturday evenings in the Sculpture Garden of The Museum of Modern Art are made possible by a grant from Mobil i Tel: 212-708-9b . x: 62370 M - 2 - pine cones (Inlets); and tin cans, coil, electric buzzer, lion's roar, metal waste basket, and water gong (Imaginary Landscape No. 2). Percussionists are Regina Brija, Maya Gunji, John Jutsum, and Patricia Niemi. All are graduates of The Juilliard School. SUMMERGARDEN has been made possible by a grant from the Mobil Corporation A special feature of the 1988 series is the Summer Cafe\ offering light refreshments and beverages. The Garden is open from 6:00 to 10:00 p.m. and concerts begin at 7:30 p.m. Entrance to SUMMERGARDEN is at 14 West 54 Street. No. 79 For further information, contact Victoria Garvin, Department of Public Information, 212/708-9758. .
Recommended publications
  • The Compositional Procedures Used in John Cage's Six Short Inventions , First Construction (In Metal) , and Spontaneous Earth
    THE COMPOSITIONAL PROCEDURES USED IN JOHN CAGE'S SIX SHORT INVENTIONS , FIRST CONSTRUCTION (IN METAL) , AND SPONTANEOUS EARTH Jesse James Guessford, D.M.A Department of Music University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2004 Sever Tipei, Advisor This study describes the processes that John Cage used in the composition of Six Short Inventions , First Construction (in Metal) , and Spontaneous Earth . With a lack of interest in John Cage’s early works, this study sheds light on the way in which these three early works are composed. In this study, the development of Cage’s square-root or micro-macrocosmic form is explored and then traced from the forms genesis to later modifications of the form. The centerpiece of the article is a description of the techniques used to create First Construction (in Metal) . Using Cage’s correspondence with Pierre Boulez as a starting point, the organizational tools and methods are uncovered and traced throughout the piece. Six Short Inventions is found to be an embryonic piece that holds traces of many of the techniques that come into existence in First Construction (in Metal) . Spontaneous Earth is used to follow the maturation of these techniques in Cage’s hands. © 2004 by Jesse James Guessford. All rights reserved THE COMPOSITIONAL PROCEDURES USED IN JOHN CAGE'S SIX SHORT INVENTIONS , FIRST CONSTRUCTION (IN METAL) , AND SPONTANEOUS EARTH BY JESSE JAMES GUESSFORD B.S., West Chester University, 1995 M.M., Potsdam College, State University of New York, 1997 DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts in Music in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2004 Urbana, Illinois Abstract This study describes the processes that John Cage used in the composition of Six Short Inventions, First Construction (in Metal), and Spontaneous Earth.
    [Show full text]
  • Digital Adaptions of the Scores for Cage Variations I, II and III
    Edith Cowan University Research Online ECU Publications 2012 1-1-2012 Digital adaptions of the scores for Cage Variations I, II and III Lindsay Vickery Catherine Hope Edith Cowan University Stuart James Edith Cowan University Follow this and additional works at: https://ro.ecu.edu.au/ecuworks2012 Part of the Music Commons Vickery, L. R., Hope, C. A., & James, S. G. (2012). Digital adaptions of the scores for Cage Variations I, II and III. Proceedings of International Computer Music Conference. (pp. 426-432). Ljubljana. International Computer Music Association. Available here This Conference Proceeding is posted at Research Online. https://ro.ecu.edu.au/ecuworks2012/165 NON-COCHLEAR SOUND _ I[M[2012 LJUBLJANA _9.-14. SEP'l'EMBER Digital adaptions of the scores for Cage Variations I, II and III Lindsay Vickery, Cat Hope, and Stuart James Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, Edith Cowan University ABSTRACT Over the ten years from 1958 to 1967, Cage revisited to the Variations series as a means of expanding his Western Australian new music ensemble Decibel have investigation not only of nonlinear interaction with the devised a software-based tool for creating realisations score but also of instrumentation, sonic materials, the of the score for John Cage's Variations I and II. In these performance space and the environment The works works Cage had used multiple transparent plastic sheets chart an evolution from the "personal" sound-world of with various forms of graphical notation, that were the performer and the score, to a vision potentially capable of independent positioning in respect to one embracing the totality of sound on a global scale.
    [Show full text]
  • The William Paterson University Department of Music Presents New
    The William Paterson University Department of Music presents New Music Series Peter Jarvis, director Featuring the Velez / Jarvis Duo, Judith Bettina & James Goldsworthy, Daniel Lippel and the William Paterson University Percussion Ensemble Monday, October 17, 2016, 7:00 PM Shea Center for the Performing Arts Program Mundus Canis (1997) George Crumb Five Humoresques for Guitar and Percussion 1. “Tammy” 2. “Fritzi” 3. “Heidel” 4. “Emma‐Jean” 5. “Yoda” Phonemena (1975) Milton Babbitt For Voice and Electronics Judith Bettina, voice Phonemena (1969) Milton Babbitt For Voice and Piano Judith Bettina, voice James Goldsworthy, Piano Penance Creek (2016) * Glen Velez For Frame Drums and Drum Set Glen Velez – Frame Drums Peter Jarvis – Drum Set Themes and Improvisations Peter Jarvis For open Ensemble Glen Velez & Peter Jarvis Controlled Improvisation Number 4, Opus 48 (2016) * Peter Jarvis For Frame Drums and Drum Set Glen Velez – Frame Drums Peter Jarvis – Drum Set Aria (1958) John Cage For a Voice of any Range Judith Bettina May Rain (1941) Lou Harrison For Soprano, Piano and Tam‐tam Elsa Gidlow Judith Bettina, James Goldsworthy, Peter Jarvis Ostinato Mezzo Forte, Opus 51 (2016) * Peter Jarvis For Percussion Band Evan Chertok, David Endean, Greg Fredric, Jesse Gerbasi Daniel Lucci, Elise Macloon Sean Dello Monaco – Drum Set * = World Premiere Program Notes Mundus Canis: George Crumb George Crumb’s Mundus Canis came about in 1997 when he wanted to write a solo guitar piece for his friend David Starobin that would be a musical homage to the lineage of Crumb family dogs. He explains, “It occurred to me that the feline species has been disproportionately memorialized in music and I wanted to help redress the balance.” Crumb calls the work “a suite of five canis humoresques” with a character study of each dog implied through the music.
    [Show full text]
  • John Cage's Entanglement with the Ideas Of
    JOHN CAGE’S ENTANGLEMENT WITH THE IDEAS OF COOMARASWAMY Edward James Crooks PhD University of York Music July 2011 John Cage’s Entanglement with the Ideas of Coomaraswamy by Edward Crooks Abstract The American composer John Cage was famous for the expansiveness of his thought. In particular, his borrowings from ‘Oriental philosophy’ have directed the critical and popular reception of his works. But what is the reality of such claims? In the twenty years since his death, Cage scholars have started to discover the significant gap between Cage’s presentation of theories he claimed he borrowed from India, China, and Japan, and the presentation of the same theories in the sources he referenced. The present study delves into the circumstances and contexts of Cage’s Asian influences, specifically as related to Cage’s borrowings from the British-Ceylonese art historian and metaphysician Ananda K. Coomaraswamy. In addition, Cage’s friendship with the Jungian mythologist Joseph Campbell is detailed, as are Cage’s borrowings from the theories of Jung. Particular attention is paid to the conservative ideology integral to the theories of all three thinkers. After a new analysis of the life and work of Coomaraswamy, the investigation focuses on the metaphysics of Coomaraswamy’s philosophy of art. The phrase ‘art is the imitation of nature in her manner of operation’ opens the doors to a wide- ranging exploration of the mimesis of intelligible and sensible forms. Comparing Coomaraswamy’s ‘Traditional’ idealism to Cage’s radical epistemological realism demonstrates the extent of the lack of congruity between the two thinkers. In a second chapter on Coomaraswamy, the extent of the differences between Cage and Coomaraswamy are revealed through investigating their differing approaches to rasa , the Renaissance, tradition, ‘art and life’, and museums.
    [Show full text]
  • Cage's Credo: the Discovery of New Imaginary Landscapes of Sound By
    JOHN CAGE: The Works for Percussion 1 Cage’s Credo: The Discovery of Percussion Group Cincinnati New Imaginary Landscapes of Sound by Paul Cox ENGLISH 1. CREDO IN US (1942) 12:58 “It’s not a physical landscape. It’s a term discovery of new sounds. Cage found an ideal for percussion quartet (including piano and radio or phonograph. FIRST VERSION reserved for the new technologies. It’s a land- incubator for his interest in percussion and With Dimitri Shostakovich: Symphony No.5, New York Philharmonic/Leonard Bernstein scape in the future. It’s as though you used electronics at the Cornish School in Seattle, Published by DSCH-Publishers. Columbia ML 5445 (LP) technology to take you off the ground and go where he worked as composer and accompa- 2. IMAGINARY LANDSCAPE No. 5 (1952) 3:09 like Alice through the looking glass.” nist for the dance program. With access to a for any 42 recordings, score to be realized as a magnetic tape — John Cage large collection of percussion instruments and FIRST VERSION, using period jazz records. Realization by Michael Barnhart a radio studio, Cage created his first “Imagi- 3. IMAGINARY LANDSCAPE No. 4, “March No. 2” (1942) 4:26 John Cage came of age during the pioneer- nary Landscape,” a title he reserved for works for 12 radios. FIRST VERSION ing era of electronic technology in the 1920s. using electronic technology. CCM Percussion Ensemble, James Culley, conductor With new inventions improving the fidelity of The Cornish radio studio served as de facto 4. IMAGINARY LANDSCAPE No. 1 (1939) 6:52 phonographs and radios, a vast array of new music laboratory where Cage created and for 2 variable-speed turntables, frequency recordings, muted piano and cymbal, voices, sounds and music entered the American broadcast the Imaginary Landscape No.
    [Show full text]
  • Cage's Early Tape Music
    The Studio as a Venue for Production and Performance: Cage’s Early Tape Music Volker Straebel I When John Cage produced his Imaginary Landscape No. 5, probably the first piece of American tape music, in January 1952, he had been researching means of electronic sound production for at least twelve years. The main layer of his text The Future of Music: Credo, falsely dated 1937 in Cage’s collected lectures and writings Silence, but probably written between 1938 and 1940,1 places sound production by means of electrical instruments at the end of a development which increases the use of noise to make music, which would extend the variety of sounds available for musical purposes. The influence of Luigi Rus- solo’s L’arte dei rumori of 1913 is obvious, a manifesto that appeared in print in English translation for the first time in Nicolas Slonimsky’s Music since 1900 in 19372 and that Cage must have been aware of in 1938, when he stated in the program notes of a Percus- sion Concert presented by his ensemble in Seattle on December 9, that »percussion music really is the art of noise and that’s what it should be called.«3 In 1939, Cage created Imaginary Landscape No. 1 utilizing test-tone records played at variable speeds at the radio studio of the Cornish School in Seattle. The score, engraved and published by C. F. Peters in the early 1960s, specifies the Victor Frequency Records being used and indicates the resulting frequencies when played at 33 1/3 or 78 rpm.
    [Show full text]
  • © in This Web Service Cambridge University
    Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-01432-9 - John Cage and David Tudor: Correspondence on Interpretation and Performance Martin Iddon Index More information Index Adams, John D. S. 196 Brown, Carolyn 13, 28, 32, 34, 63, 82, 99, 107, Adler, Stella 108 108, 109, 112, 115, 116, 122, 126, 128, 147, Agamben, Giorgio 213–15 148, 158, 211 Ajemian, Anahid 6, 8, 12 Brown, Earle 13, 28, 31, 32, 34, 46, 50, 82, 99, Ajemian, Maro 5, 6, 8, 9, 12 104, 106, 107, 109, 115, 119, 124, 147 Amey, Frank, 95, 111, 112, 114, 116, 121, December 1952 110, 211 128, 129 Four Systems (1952–54) 93 Amey, Nikky 111, 114 Indices (1954) 197, 211 Antheil, George 26, 34 Trio for 5 dancers (1953) 32 Antonio, Emile de 96 Brücher, Ernst 113, 116, 119 Artaud, Antonin 13, 29 Buhlig, Richard 25 Auster, Paul 1 Bussotti, Sylvano 96, 104, 105, 106, 107, 112 5 Piano Pieces for David Tudor 96, 113 Babbitt, Milton 133 Butterfield, Don 81, 82, 158 Composition for Viola and Piano (1950) 16 Bach, Johann Sebastian 30 Cage, John Barab, Seymour 4, 6, 8, 9, 34 0′00″ (1962) 114, 140, 204 Barber, George 8 1′5½″ for a String Player (1953) 32 Barrault, Jean-Louis 27, 29 26′1.1499″ for a string player (1955) 45 Bauermeister, Mary 113, 118, 126, 131, 166 27′10.554″ for a percussionist (1956) 45 Bauman, Alvin 16 31.57.9864″ for a pianist (1954) 45, 46, 48 1 Baumgarten, Alexander Gottlieb 215 33 /3 (1969) 156 Becker, John 31 34′46.776″ for a pianist (1954) 19, 45–47, 48, Beethoven, Ludwig van 114, 175 80, 160, 173, 211 Behrman, David 197 4′33″ (1952) 7, 19, 32, 41, 43–45, 46, 47, 48, Berberian,
    [Show full text]
  • EMPTY WORDS Other
    EMPTY WORDS Other Wesley an University Press books by John Cage Silence: Lectures and Writings A Year from Monday: New Lectures and Writings M: Writings '67-72 X: Writings 79-'82 MUSICAGE: CAGE MUSES on Words *Art*Music l-VI Anarchy p Writings 73-78 bv WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY PRESS Middletown, Connecticut Published by Wesleyan University Press Middletown, CT 06459 Copyright © 1973,1974,1975,1976,1977,1978,1979 by John Cage All rights reserved First paperback edition 1981 Printed in the United States of America 5 Most of the material in this volume has previously appeared elsewhere. "Preface to: 'Lecture on the Weather*" was published and copyright © 1976 by Henmar Press, Inc., 373 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10016. Reprint pernr~sion granted by the publisher. An earlier version of "How the Piano Came to be Prepared" was originally the Introduction to The Well-Prepared Piano, copyright © 1973 by Richard Bunger. Reprinted by permission of the author. Revised version copyright © 1979 by John Cage. "Empty Words" Part I copyright © 1974 by John Cage. Originally appeared in Active Anthology. Part II copyright © 1974 by John Cage. Originally appeared in Interstate 2. Part III copyright © 1975 by John Cage. Originally appeared in Big Deal Part IV copyright © 1975 by John Cage. Originally appeared in WCH WAY. "Series re Morris Graves" copyright © 1974 by John Cage. See headnote for other information. "Where are We Eating? and What are We Eating? (Thirty-eight Variations on a Theme by Alison Knowles)" from Merce Cunningham, edited and with photographs and an introduction by James Klosty.
    [Show full text]
  • Imaginary Landscape -- Electronics in Live Performance, 1989 and 1939
    Imaginary Landscape -- Electronics in Live Performance, 1989 and 1939 by Nicolas Collins lecture presented at Audio Arts Symposium, Linz, September 1988 Consider John Cage's Imaginary Landscape #1. Written in 1939 for two record players, test records of electronic tones, muted piano, and cymbal, it is one of the first pieces of live electronic music, and on this rests its fame. But less obvious aspects of the composition are worth noting as well. Instead of using any of the expensive electronic instruments of the time, such as the Ondes Martinot or Theremin, Cage chose the record player -- an affordable appliance, never before thought of as an "instrument," which could theoretically be played by anyone. With a prophetic eye toward alternative performance venues, the score specifically suggested that the piece be performed for "recording or broadcast." Finally, the sounds were indeed placed in a landscape, organized in a radical new way that mimicked the way sounds exist in life, rather than forcing them to "sound like some old instrument" (as Cage complained in his 1937 manifesto, The Future of Music: Credo). This intertwining of technology with its musical and social implications distinguished this piece from any other music of the time and also from any electronic music produced by other composers for over 25 years. Imaginary Landscape was truly New Music. If 1939 can be declared the birthdate of Live Electronic Music, it was a birth that was in many ways premature. As a genre it did not come of age until the late 1960's and early 1970's, with the music of Alvin Lucier, David Behrman, Robert Ashley, Gordon Mumma, Pauline Oliveros, Steve Reich, Terry Riley, Phil Glass, Maryanne Amacher, LaMonte Young, David Tudor, and their contemporaries and students.
    [Show full text]
  • A Performer's Guide to the Prepared Piano of John Cage
    A Performer’s Guide to the Prepared Piano of John Cage: The 1930s to 1950s. A document submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Cincinnati in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS in the Keyboard Studies Division of the College-Conservatory of Music By Sejeong Jeong B.M., Sookmyung Women’s University, 2011 M.M., Illinois State University, 2014 ________________________________ Committee Chair : Jeongwon Joe, Ph. D. ________________________________ Reader : Awadagin K.A. Pratt ________________________________ Reader : Christopher Segall, Ph. D. ABSTRACT John Cage is one of the most prominent American avant-garde composers of the twentieth century. As the first true pioneer of the “prepared piano,” Cage’s works challenge pianists with unconventional performance practices. In addition, his extended compositional techniques, such as chance operation and graphic notation, can be demanding for performers. The purpose of this study is to provide a performer’s guide for four prepared piano works from different points in the composer’s career: Bacchanale (1938), The Perilous Night (1944), 34'46.776" and 31'57.9864" For a Pianist (1954). This document will detail the concept of the prepared piano as defined by Cage and suggest an approach to these prepared piano works from the perspective of a performer. This document will examine Cage’s musical and philosophical influences from the 1930s to 1950s and identify the relationship between his own musical philosophy and prepared piano works. The study will also cover challenges and performance issues of prepared piano and will provide suggestions and solutions through performance interpretations.
    [Show full text]
  • Schuermer.Pdf —
    Auditive Perspektiven 4/2012 - 1 Anna Schürmer „…es wäre ein Akt der Nächstenliebe, sie zu zerschmeißen…“ John Cage und technische Medien: Random zwischen Differenz und Wiederholung You see I don’t have a sound equipment here... zipien – abhängt, unabhängig von den gewählten I didn’t enjoy listening to records. kompositorischen Mitteln, seien sie nun technischer I was always interested in sound. oder instrumentaler Natur. Dem soll durch eine Ge- genüberstellung John Cages sprachlicher und kompo- John Cage ist ein Paradox, auch in Bezug auf seinen sitorischer Äußerungen zur technischen Reproduzier- Umgang mit technischen Medien. Einerseits positio- barkeit von Musik und dem ästhetischen Einsatz von nierte er sich wie kaum ein anderer Künstler zur Me- Medientechniken auf der einen Seite sowie seinem in- dientechnik; er reflektierte die Thematik nicht nur in strumentalen Schaffen auf der anderen Seite nachge- Vorträgen und Schriften1, sondern war treibende Kraft gangen werden. Beispielhaft wird hier das Concert for für die Entwicklung der amerikanischen Tape Music Piano and Orchestra (1958) herausgehoben, in dem und schuf mit Werken für Plattenspieler, Tonband und Cage auf keinerlei technische Medien zurückgreift und Radio zahlreiche Medien-Kompositionen2. Anderer- das dennoch Aufschluss über die hier aufgeworfenen seits können oder müssen gerade diese als kritische Fragen verspricht. Das Klavierkonzert kann als Haupt- Auseinandersetzung mit der Kunstmusik im Zeitalter werk der 1950er Jahre gelten, seit deren Beginn sich ihrer technischen Reproduzierbarkeit betrachtet wer- Cage bedingungslos dem Zufall als kompositorischem den, die Cage immer wieder mit Unbehagen kommen- Prinzip zugewendet hat. Die Aleatorik, das instrumen- tierte. Einerseits setzte Cages kompositorisches tal eingesetzten Prinzip des Random, kann als anar- Schaffen auf einfache Wiederholbarkeit, andererseits chisches Manifest und als künstlerischer Akt gegen betonte er das Ereignis der Aufführung und die Aktion technische Reproduzierung und für die Betonung des des klingenden Augenblicks.
    [Show full text]
  • JOHN CAGE: SIXTEEN DANCES SIXTEEN DANCES (1951) JOHN CAGE 1912–1992 [1] No
    JOHN CAGE: SIXTEEN DANCES SIXTEEN DANCES (1951) JOHN CAGE 1912–1992 [1] No. 1 [Anger] 1:27 SIXTEEN DANCES [2] No. 2 [Interlude] 3:07 [3] No. 3 [Humor] 1:43 [4] No. 4 [Interlude] 2:06 BOSTON MODERN ORCHESTRA PROJECT [5] No. 5 [Sorrow] 2:01 GIL ROSE, CONDUCTOR [6] No. 6 [Interlude] 2:17 [7] No. 7 [The Heroic] 2:40 [8] No. 8 [Interlude] 3:29 [9] No. 9 [The Odious] 3:10 [10] No. 10 [Interlude] 2:20 [11] No. 11 [The Wondrous] 2:05 [12] No. 12 [Interlude] 2:09 [13] No. 13 [Fear] 1:24 [14] No. 14 [Interlude] 5:12 [15] No. 15 [The Erotic] 3:10 [16] No. 16 [Tranquility] 3:51 TOTAL 42:12 COMMENT By David Vaughan At the beginning of the 1950’s, John Cage began to use chance operations in his musical composition. He and Merce Cunningham were working on a big new piece, Sixteen Dances for Soloist and Company of Three. To facilitate the composition, Cage drew up a series of large charts on which he could plot rhythmic structures. In working with these charts, he caught first glimpse of a whole new approach to musical composition—an approach that led him very quickly to the use of chance. “Somehow,” he said, “I reached the conclusion that I could compose according to moves on these charts instead of according to my own taste.”1 The composer Christian Wolff introduced Cage to theI Ching, or Book of Changes, which COMPANY CUNNINGHAM DANCE OF MERCE COURTESY PETERICH, GERDA PHOTO: (1951).
    [Show full text]