John Cage was born on this date.

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

?si=914GUHLsAKv5jNon

[303squadron]

1. My musical honor

My hand wraps around the fret board, the fingers of my other hand hover over the strings. After 30 seconds I lift my hands away from the instrument. Again I pose at the guitar this time for 2 minutes and 23 seconds. I “stop” lift my hands for a pause then assume the playing position for 1 minute 40 seconds.

I Ching the solid body electric!

[ProfessorGAC]

2. As A Joke...

...I did 4'33" at a talent show in college! I sat on the bench with a stopwatch.
In the spirit of Cage, I then did a prepared piano thing. Thumbtacks in some hammers, marbles on the strings, my foot on the sustain pedal almost the whole time, then played everything in diminished or augmented scales & chords.
It was nothing but theoretically consistent noise. I think John would have approved.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

3. On September 5, 1912, John Cage was born.

John Cage


Cage in 1988

Born: John Milton Cage Jr.; September 5, 1912; Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Died: August 12, 1992 (aged 79); New York City, U.S.
Alma mater: Pomona College

John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading figures of the post-war avant-garde. Critics have lauded him as one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was also instrumental in the development of modern dance, mostly through his association with choreographer Merce Cunningham, who was also Cage's romantic partner for most of their lives.

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Cage's best known work is the 1952 composition 4′33″, a piece performed in the absence of deliberate sound; musicians who present the work do nothing but be present for the duration specified by the title. The content of the composition is intended to be the sounds of the environment heard by the audience during performance. The work's challenge to assumed definitions about musicianship and musical experience made it a popular and controversial topic both in musicology and the broader aesthetics of art and performance. Cage was also a pioneer of the prepared piano (a piano with its sound altered by objects placed between or on its strings or hammers), for which he wrote numerous dance-related works and a few concert pieces. These include Sonatas and Interludes (1946–48).

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John Cage: 4'33" (For Orchestra and Soloist)

Randall Speer
41 subscribers

78,531 views Mar 9, 2018
Randolph College Fall Concert 2017: RC Chamber Orchestra; William Parrish, Jr., soloist; Randall Speer, conductor.

Tue Sep 5, 2023: On this day, September 5, 1912, John Cage was born.