Customer Reviews

The 25-Year Retrospective Concert of the Music of John Cage

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It was painters Jasper Johns and Bob Rauschenberg who helped arrange this, what today is a monumental document of the American avant-garde. And this was in the late Fifties a time when these American artists had very little money. Here we have all the Cage classics. The "Sonatas and Interludes" for pre-pared piano speaks for itself. Cowell suggested this idea to Cage. So Cage while working on dance accompaniments where no percussion instruments could be played,saw the availability of a piano. He began placing various screws and erasers between the strings. The sound is gamelan-like with thuds,knocks,clings and pings. But also very beautiful even enchanting. Also "Williams Mix" is here a very early electronic piece made from the ancient art of splicing tape together in an indeterminate fashion. I believe Earle Brown had helped. "The Wonderful Widow of Eighteen Springs" is also fascinating where the pianist closes the piano lid to strike 5 various parts of the front piano seated. The effect is not quite bongo-like more dull and thudy with a disarming folksy plain vocal lines singing Joyce. Pure simplicity was an early Cage fascination which has not lost its power to evoke. The mammoth "Concert for Piano" is also here a seminal work conceived of various graphic(almost encyclopedic) procedural ways of playing. Cage had identified some 40 odd ways of attacking,rolling verticalities and horizontialities on the piano keyboard. The work is also a pure graphic feast for the eyes, a delight. The orchestral accompaniment(we really cannot call it that) is made of independent solos,trombone,violin with no direct synchronization. And can be played with or without the piano or these various instruments. But the effect can be anarchistic(non-political) mesmerizing,humorous,dead serious all simultaneously,or not,depending on the performer's energy levels. Cage had opened a chasm of libertarian performing and conceptual creative fluidity that hasn't been closed yet. His open creativity continues to inspire and redirect itself through succeeding generations. This is a monumental document from the earliest days of the high avant-garde reflecting the full scope of these new aesthetic freedoms,or a turn away from an aesthetic object. Perhaps we will know someplace in between.

This is perhaps one of the most important documents of American Music ever recorded, the Composer John Cage will undoubtedly be veiwed in future eras as not only the most important American composer of all time, but one of the most important Composers of all time. Until this time, also the work of Edgard Varese, Pierre Schaeffer and Karlheinz Stockhausen, all music in "the west" written after Bach could have been found in Bach, it was even said if all music was lost as long as Bach remained it could all be discovered again. Here's where everything changes. To really appreciate Cage's music it is best to hear him or David Tudor perform or "conduct" it, they are both onboard here for this excellent three C.D. set. Most of Cage's major works are represented here, his percussion pieces, his prepared piano, even his tape music. Start here, then get Indeterminancy, Roaratorio, more preapared piano pieces, and Cartridge music. But DO start here, there are too many poor interpretations of Cage's music available, you can't go wrong with this. And if you already know Cage's music but don't own this, then you should be ashamed of yourself.