Flotation Device celebrates John Cage’s 110th birthday with a retrospective of this most radical and influential of all American mavericks. We touch on his development of percussion, chance, noise and live electronic music, his invention of the prepared piano, and his innovations in graphic and indeterminate notation. We note his penchant for high-decibel musicmaking, while conceding the irony of his most famous composition being the “silent” one.
The show features compositions from Cage's early Seattle residency through a newly-recorded choral work from his last year. Performers include Carla Bley, Pacific Rims, dhrupad vocalist Amelia Cuni, a Balinese gamelan, a period instrument ensemble (of sorts), and Cage himself.
We also pay our respects to the prematurely-departed Jaimie Branch. And our 50 years ago in the avant-garde feature examines three remarkable—and quite different—manifestations of Fall ‘72 experimentalism from Stockhausen, Penderecki and Miles Davis.
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Photo credits: Amelia Cuni via the artist, John Cage via Wikimedia Commons, Langham Research Centre via the artists, John Cage’s script for Cartridge Music, Karlheinz Stockhausen and John Cage by Felicitas Timpe, Carla Bley by Bill Roughan, David Tudor and John Cage via Gordon Mumma, Sanggar Ceraken via Yantra Productions, Jaimie Branch by Abdesslam Mirdass, Merce Cunningham/Bonnie Bird/Syvilla Fort/Dorothy Hermann at The Cornish School by Phyllis Dearborn, phonograph cartridges for Cartridge Music by Michael Schell
Flotation Device 2022-09-04: John Cage at 110
Intro and SET 1: Jaimie Branch (1983–2022) and 50 years ago in the avant-garde [0:00]
1. [1:30] Dave Gisler Trio with Jaimie Branch: Get a Döner. From See You Out There (Intakt, 2022) with Jaimie Branch (trumpet), Dave Gisler Trio: Dave Gisler (electric guitar), Raffaele Bossard (bass), Lionel Friedli (drums), Lara Persia (recording engineer). NOTE: Recorded November 2021 at Rotfarb Studio, Uznach, Switzerland
2. [4:30] Dave Gisler Trio with Jaimie Branch: Dive. From Zurich Concert (Intakt, 2020) with Jaimie Branch (trumpet), Dave Gisler Trio: Dave Gisler (electric guitar), Raffaele Bossard (bass), Lionel Friedli (drums), Lars Dölle (recording engineer). NOTE: Recorded live November 29, 2019 at unerhört!-Festival, Zürich, Switzerland
3. [10:19] Miles Davis: Rated X. From The Complete On The Corner Sessions (Columbia, 2007) with Miles Davis (organ), Reggie Lucas (guitar), Khalil Balakrishna (sitar), Michael Henderson (electric bass), Al Foster (drums), Badal Roy (tabla), James Mtume Forman (percussion). NOTE: Recorded September 6, 1972, New York
4. [17:11] Karlheinz Stockhausen: Communication. From Music from Für Kommende Zeiten (Siltaclassics, 2012) with Intuitive Music Quartet: Mario Mariotti (trumpet, flugelhorn), Walter Prati (synthesizer, electronics), Mell Morcone (piano), Giorgio Bini (bass). NOTE: Composed 1969–70. Premiered September 6, 1972 at Shiraz Arts Festival, Iran by the English group Intermodulation⠀
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SET 2: Happy Birthday John Cage (1912–1992) [25:14]
1. [30:33] Bacchanale. From The American Innovator (Argo, 1993) with Alan Feinberg (prepared piano). NOTE: Composed in Seattle 1940
2. [39:28] Raga 2 and 1 (excerpts). From Solo for Voice 58: 18 Microtonal Ragas (Other Minds, 2007) with Amelia Cuni (dhrupad vocals), Werner Durand (drones, electronics), Raymond Kaczynski, Federico Sanesi (percussion)
3. [45:42] First Construction (In Metal). With Jarrad Powell, Roger Nelson, Pacific Rims: Gunnar Folsom, Paul Hansen, Matthew Kocmieroski, Robert Tucker (percussion). NOTE: Composed in Seattle 1939, recorded live October 7, 2005 at Poncho Hall, Cornish College of the Arts, Seattle
4. [56:41] Outro with Krzysztof Penderecki: Cello Concerto No. 1
5. [1:01:15] Second Construction. From Three Constructions (Tomato, 1989) with Donald Knaack Percussion Ensemble. NOTE: Composed in Seattle 1940⠀
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SET 3: Cage, Stein and Cummings [1:08:52]
1. [1:10:29] Story (from Living Room Music). From Stories (Harmonia Mundi, 2011) with Theatre of Voices, Paul Hillier. NOTE: Composed 1940, text Gertrude Stein
2. [1:15:15] Sonata V from Sonatas and Interludes for prepared piano. From The 25-Year Retrospective Concert of the Music of John Cage (George Avakian, 1958, reissued by Wergo 1994) with Maro Ajemian (prepared piano). NOTE: Composed 1946–48. Recorded live May 15, 1958 at the 25 Year Retrospective Concert of the Music of John Cage, Town Hall, New York
3. [1:16:42] Sonata V from Sonatas and Interludes for prepared piano, arranged for gamelan by Andrew Clay McGraw. From Gamelan Cage (Sargasso, 2013) with Sanggar Ceraken of Bali
4. [1:18:24] Imaginary Landscape No. 1 for two variable-speed turntables, frequency recordings, muted piano and cymbal. From Cage Edition 43: Works For Percussion 1 (Mode, 2011) with Percussion Group Cincinnati, Joey Van Hassel. NOTE: Composed in Seattle 1939. This is the first modern recording to use the actual phonograph records and variable-speed turntables specified in the score
5. [1:25:08] Indeterminacy - excerpt from Part 2. From Indeterminacy: New Aspect of Form in Instrumental and Electronic Music (Folkways, 1959, reissued by Smithsonian Folkways 1992) with John Cage (reading), David Tudor (music). NOTE: Recorded 1959
6. [1:28:07] Forever and Sunsmell. From Jan Steele/John Cage: Voices and Instruments (Obscure, 1976) with Carla Bley (voice), Richard Bernas (percussion). NOTE: Composed 1942⠀
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SET 4: Hardcore Cage [1:34:25]
1. [1:38:42] Four⁶ (excerpts). From Choral Works (Ondine, 2022) with Latvian Radio Choir, Sigvards Kļava (conductor), Agnese Streļča (recording engineer), NOTE: Composed 1992
2. [1:45:26] Cartridge Music (excerpt). From John Cage • Christian Wolff (Time Records, 1963) with John Cage, David Tudor (phonograph cartridges, contact microphones). NOTE: Composed 1960, premiered September 15, 1960. See https://youtu.be/qoRPaWhovEc for a video introduction to Cartridge Music and Radio Eclectus #008 at https://tinyurl.com/RadioEclectus008 for two more performances of Cartridge Music
3. [1:49:54] Cartridge Music (excerpt). From Cage: Early Electronic & Tape Music (Sub Rosa, 2014) with Langham Research Centre: Felix Carey, Iain Chambers, Philip Tagney, Robert Worby (phonograph cartridges, contact microphones)
4. [1:55:48] Outro with John Cage: Hymns and Variations