I highly doubt that the artist John Cage sounds familiar to anyone who reads my blog, but for those of you that do, I do not blame you for clicking that big x in the upper right hand corner of your screen. For those of you this warning did not scare away, I would like to discuss some of John Cage’s music, and what makes him such an influential composer.
John Cage became a popular and influential composer after appearing in a public piano performance by William Marx who performed his three movement work 4’33”. The song in question has some very advanced music theory involved. It begins with the performer setting up a timer, starting the timer, and the closing the piano. By the time the timer goes off, the performer takes a bow, and moves on to the second movement, where they start the timer once more and close the piano. The well renowned third movement involves a pristine sounding clanking of wood as the piano is closed for the third time. In total, the song lasts for 4 minutes and thirty-three seconds, which is where the name comes from. This unheard of and extensive use of complex theory appeals to listeners who have a very long attention span, so many miss out on the opportunity to engage in Cage’s beautiful compositions.
Another one of John Cage’s famous works, ASLSP, is played on a grand orchestra that takes up an entire church. Imagine playing an instrument that large! This piece appeals to listeners who really enjoy listening to slow songs with very pretty chords, and really uses tempo control to the next level.
This is the very simplistic sheet music. The most recent performance of this piece was in 2001 and has been going on ever since. It’s planned to end in the year 2640, and will next change notes in February of 2024. What a fun song to listen to! ASLSP stands for As Slow as Possible, if you had not already figured it out, and its truly a worldwide event in the music world whenever a note change occurs since it only happens every few years.
In case you have not realized, this is my take on a late April Fools blog post. John Cage truly is a successful musician and for some reason people buy his humorous music that often can’t even be played. For example, one of his most popular compositions is written for a cactus played with a feather. Here is a picture of him performing that piece.
