John Cage 's Theory Of Silence And Chance Operations

Living Room Music is one his most performed pieces because it was fun for both the players and the audience. In this piece, the player use common household items as instruments, often times where house-clothes, and are playing on a set designed to look like a living room. The quartet uses unspecified items that could range from magazines, newspapers, tables, wooden furniture, large books, the floor, the wall or a door. Within in this piece there are four movements. This piece is an excellent example of John Cage’s interest in non-traditional instruments and timbre. John Cage was willing to push many boundaries in his pieces. Although some individuals may not agree with John Cage’s approach to music, I believe his pieces are a great example of using unusual elements to create a music that is characteristic to Cage.

Milton Babbitt and John Cage were both composers who played pivotal roles in the post-World War II Avant Garde music scene and in the pioneering of electronic music. Both composers found their roots and were greatly influenced by German-Jewish composer Arnold Schoenberg, however they both adopted different viewpoints on the relationship between a composer and their audience . Babbitt believed that a composer or creator did not have an obligation to please his or her audience, and that his pieces were intended mostly for professionals capable of understanding the context and intention of his music. Cage on the other hand granted his audience more power and influence, believing that music was a platform on which audiences could utilize their creativity to adopt new ways of perceiving and being aware of the world around them. These stances, as well as the different techniques and methodologies of the composers pitted them on somewhat of a spectrum, with Babbitt and his systematic, modernist ideas that were largely based in the music schools of academic institutions on one side and Cage, with his uncontrollable, radical combinations of Avant Garde sounds on the other side. These ideas on audience construction and relations were also visible in rock music of the 1960’s, particularly in compositions of artists such as Jimi Hendrix and Bob Dylan.

He does not create scores with orthodox musical methods and his music can be unpleasant or even irritating to some; yet by using a technological process, he reveals a naturally occurring acoustic phenomena and demonstrates it an unforgettable physical form. In the simplest way one could imagine (play-record-play-re-record-repeat), Lucier successfully guides the audience to pay attention to listening itself, to sound itself, to the space that we stand in, to the effect that the surrounding environment may have upon us. Other composers may deliver emotions or opinions through their works, but Lucier manages to erase all these subjective judgements, triggers a self-reflecting thinking process and initiate a borderless experience that all audience shared

John Milton Cage Jr. is easily one of the most influential American composers of our time. John Cage spent his early life in Los Angeles, California after being born to Lucretia Harvey and John Milton Cage Sr. on September 5, 1912. Cage’s embarked on the first steps to his music career when he began taking private piano lessons when he was just a kid. As the years went by it seemed as if Cage became more interested in literature and writing than music composition. Cage graduated from Los Angeles High School as valedictorian and went on to give a rather enticing speech that gained recognition at the Hollywood Bowl. Cage’s speech seemed to have foreshadowed his most popular piece entitled “4’33”, one of which I consider to be one of the most

There have been many inspiring inventions in music over the years, and our society continues to add to that glory. However, we need to realize that if it wasn’t for the fathers of music, modern day compositions would sound nothing like they do. Our civilization needs to realize that music is not a mere commodity, but a form of art that dates back thousands of years. We need to be aware of this and not take music, it’s beauty, and it’s unique and humble history for

A composer’s music reveals a great deal about his life experiences, personal beliefs, and musical philosophy. Each individual has the incredible ability to change the course of musical history with his ideas. Iannis Xenakis changed how people view and listen to classical music by applying the principles of architecture, calculus, and engineering to his music. (bois pg3) While other composers were struggling to create new music, Xenakis revolutionized classical music by using architecture fundamentals in a way to visualize music, and reinvent its structure by creating contrast between movement and standstill. (harley 10) His unique educational background gave him a different perspective and edge in the world of music. He developed his own musical

¨My idea is that there is music in the air, music all around us, the world is full of it and you simply take as much as you require.¨ Edward Elgar once said. Composers, like Elgar, are very talented people that use many techniques to make visuals including tempo, instrumentation and dynamics.

The exploration of the timbral possibilities of the piano as a percussive instrument would be developed later in the 20th century by composers such as John Cage, for example, in his works for prepared piano in the 1940s.

There is a natural question that almost every single person has wondered on; “Will what I do in my life matter? Do I have an impact beyond my small corner of the universe?” Few ponder that more than Artists, those who create, whatever the medium. Deep down we all want to know that our work has made an impact. If the impact of one’s work is to be measured by both quality and quantity, there are few people in history who have had as great significance as Johann Sebastian Bach. Bach’s works broke numerous compositional limits of the time, and are of such a quality that they are still performed and enjoyed today, two hundred and sixty-three years after his death. In this paper, I will be writing about two main points: the life of Johann Sebastian Bach, and his legacy and lasting impact after his death.

Music has been in the world for so long that it has developed over time by composers who make music and even try their best to change how the world sees music. Three musicians that will be talked about in this essay are Mozart, Beethoven, and Stravinsky. Each composer’s life is different from the other. Mozart started out as a child prodigy who was able to play instruments at a very young age. He later started composing music which he manifested in his head.

Music has always been apart of my life ,from the tender age of six years old we have ever been apart. The art form of musical arts will forever intrigue me and compel me to push myself to my musical limit. The history of the evolution of music through the centuries is quite alluring. The formulation of musical intellectually concepts and leaps of faith that composers at the time

The music of John Cage is highly criticized, yet highly revered within the same societal realm. The question that has yet to be answered, even after fifty plus years, is John Cages music really “music” or is it just noise? The dictionary definition of music is the following: “vocal or instrumental sounds (or both) combined in such a way as to produce beauty of form, harmony, and expression of emotion.” My personal version of the definition of music is a variant of the definition listed above. I believe that music is the combination of vocal, instrumental sounds, or silence (or all the above) produced in a way to express a feeling or emotion. Based on my own personal definition of music, I do consider John Cages pieces to be music.

René Descartes’ mind–body dualism is based on the premise that the mind (responsible for activities of thinking) constitutes the essence of knowledge, while the body (responsible for activities of doing) serves as the mind’s extension and executive organ in space. Thus, Cartesian philosophy handles these two components as distinct from each other, with a hierarchical relation in which the mind transcends and governs the body. Influential as it had been, however, the concept started facing significant challenges in the beginning of the 20th century when some philosophers sought to meld the boundaries between body and mind. Instead of viewing knowledge as a solely intellectual matter, they proposed that the experience

Claude Debussy was one of the renowned French composers of the late 1800’s. He used a compositional device to dilute the sense of directed motion found in traditional progressions. Although it took while for the listening public and critics to warm up to this bold and new experiment in harmonic freedom, he was soon a distinguished music composer (Claude Debussy). Debussy’s life, style, and influences all play a role in this famous composers history.

Wouter Kellerman, a South African flautist, has made an impact in the music world, specifically that of ‘world music’. Developing his own unique cross-over style, Kellerman has gained both national and international fame as indicated by winning a number of prestigious awards and performing at several prominent national and international events, in addition to concert tours. Furthermore, Kellerman has released a number of recorded albums, which have been distributed around the world and have received critical acclaim. However, one of the most notable characteristics of Kellerman is his status as a cross-over engineer-musician – something which significantly influenced the course of his life and career.