Poetry, stories, art, and music from the desk of Jezzie G, a writer without a label
In a Landscape
1948
Avant-Garde
John Cage
Avant-garde
Born: 5 September 1912, California, USA
Nationality: American
Died: 12 August 1992, New York, USA
Cage was a composer and music theorist. He was 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-WW2 Avant-Garde. Considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century, Cage was instrumental in the development of modern dance
Fontana Mix
1958
Avant-Garde
John Cage
Avant-garde
Born: 5 September 1912, California, USA
Nationality: American
Died: 12 August 1992, New York, USA
Cage was a composer and music theorist. He was 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-WW2 Avant-Garde. Considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century, Cage was instrumental in the development of modern dance
Cheap Imitation
1969
Performance Art
Piano and performer
The last piece performed live by Cage, “Cheap Imitation” is an exercise in postmodern appropriation relying on musical instead of visual quotation. Composed for dual pianists, Cage based the work upon Erik Satie’s Socrate. By quoting the original work the pitches and tones were determined on by chance using the I-Ching putting an emphasis on the role chance plays in life.
“Cheap Imitation” predates the appropriation art of the 1980s with Cage quoting an extant musical score and presenting it in a whole new context. Through the use of appropriation Cage’s transition into the pastiche of postmodernism was smoothed by a cultural shift that began in the late 1960s
John Cage
Neo-Dada, Fluxus, Conceptual Art
Born: 5 September 1912, California, USA
Nationality: American
Died: 12 August 1992, New York, USA
Cage was a composer and music theorist best known as a pioneer in music, electroacoustics, and the non-standard use of musical instruments. He was a leading figure of the post-war avant-garde and he is considered by critics to be one of the most influential composers of the 20th century
4’33”
1952
Performance Art
Performance art, with musician, instrument, and audience
Cage created 4’33” whilst at Black Mountain. However, the work does not depend on a number of performers bringing it to fruition, instead, it is dependent on chance and the environment in which it is performed. The composition of three movements does not contain a single musical note. Cage wrote detailed instructions for a single musician to enter the stage and prepare their instrument before sitting in absolute silence for 4 minutes and 33 seconds, the duration of the piece. The silence allows the surrounding sounds and their audience to become the music
John Cage
Neo-Dada, Fluxus, Conceptual Art
Born: 5 September 1912, California, USA
Nationality: American
Died: 12 August 1992, New York, USA
Cage was a composer and music theorist best known as a pioneer in music, electroacoustics, and the non-standard use of musical instruments. He was a leading figure of the post-war avant-garde and he is considered by critics to be one of the most influential composers of the 20th century
Variations I
1958
Performance Art
Performers and instruments
Cage’s Variations, composed between 1958 and 1967, are a series of eight happenings and intermediate musical scores. “Variations I” was composed in tribute to Cage’s friend and collaborator David Tudor. He made no prerequisite to how many performers or instruments took part. The key was the instructions, comprised of a complicated grid consisting of six transparent squares containing points and lines of various sizes which acted as the sheet music.
John Cage
Neo-Dada, Fluxus, Conceptual Art
Born: 5 September 1912, California, USA
Nationality: American
Died: 12 August 1992, New York, USA
Cage was a composer and music theorist best known as a pioneer in music, electroacoustics, and the non-standard use of musical instruments. He was a leading figure of the post-war avant-garde and he is considered by critics to be one of the most influential composers of the 20th century
Number Pieces
1987-92
Performance Art
Multi-media
“Number Pieces” was created in the last six years of Cage’s life It is an extensive series of work with each “Number Piece” named after the number of performers involved, ranging from One for a single performer and 108 for an orchestra. The majority of the works in the suite utilize aleatory music, relying upon instrumental silences and the whim of the performers to complete the composition. In this, his final series f work, Cage pre-empted many of the post-modern pursuits, including explorations of duration and ambient sound as well as the use of new technology in the creation of art.
John Cage
Neo-Dada, Fluxus, Conceptual Art
Born: 5 September 1912, California, USA
Nationality: American
Died: 12 August 1992, New York, USA
Cage was a composer and music theorist best known as a pioneer in music, electroacoustics, and the non-standard use of musical instruments. He was a leading figure of the post-war avant-garde and he is considered by critics to be one of the most influential composers of the 20th century.
Jezzie G 