Dear Thomas;
Please define "serious composer."
Gary Digman
----- Original Message -----
From: Thomas Schall
Date: 19 Dec 2003 17:36:47 +0100
To: Howard Posner
Subject: Re: John Cage on Lute
> If I could regard this as a joke it would be a fine idea but if I
recall
> right Cage really thought to be a serious composer.
> Reminds me on a german band (I think it was "Einstuerzende
Neubauten")
> which recorded a similar piece called "Nichts" (nothing) in the
80's.
>
> Strawinski's comment propably meant any time Cage spends with
nothing is
> better than if he would produce tones ...
>
> Thomas
>
> Am Fre, 2003-12-19 um 16.05 schrieb Howard Posner:
>
> > Roman Turovsky at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
> >
> > > Was the piece that requires no playing? I forget the title,
something like
> > > "4.32". Just sit for 4 and a half minutes an d take your bows.
> >
> > Close. It was 4'33" (as in four minutes, 33 seconds) and involves
slightly
> > (but not much) more than just sitting. The first performance (this
is an
> > account, mind you, written by someone who thought the piece worth
writing
> > about) in 1952 went like this:
> >
> > "Tudor placed the hand-written score, which was in conventional
notation
> > with blank measures, on the piano and sat motionless as he used a
stopwatch
> > to measure the time of each movement. The score indicated three
silent
> > movements, each of a different length, but when added together
totalled four
> > minutes and thirty-three seconds. Tudor signaled its commencement
by
> > lowering the keyboard lid of the piano. The sound of the wind in
the trees
> > entered the first movement. After thirty seconds of no action, he
raised the
> > lid to signal the end of the first movement. It was then lowered
for the
> > second movement, during which raindrops pattered on the roof. The
score was
> > in several pages, so he turned the pages as time passed, yet
playing nothing
> > at all. The keyboard lid was raised and lowered again for the
final
> > movement, during which the audience whispered and muttered."
> >
> > You can read all about it at www.azstarnet.com/~solo/4min33se.htm.
> >
> > Stravinsky remarked that he hoped we could have similar works of
major
> > length from Cage.
> >
> > HP
>
> --
> Thomas Schall
> Niederhofheimer Weg 3
> D-65843 Sulzbach
> 06196/74519
> [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> www.lautenist.de / www.tslaute.de/weiss
>
> --
>
--
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