The Process of Structural Transformation of John Cage’s Music (Case Study: Composition, Notation, Audience)

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 student/tarbiat modares

2 Associate professor, Tarbiat Modares university

3 Associate Professor, Tarbiat Modares university

Abstract

John Cage, the leading post-war and one of the most influential musicians of the second half of the 20th century, for several decades was in the center of the avant-garde movement in America. By separating from the musical traditions of the past and utilizing a wide range of initiatives and innovations, he influenced a larger discussion on the role of music and work of a musician. There are two fundamental factors in many of Cage’s works; first, his ever-searching mind that severely responds to the changes of his surroundings and has had many innovations under the influence of them. Second, his concentration on a series of nonstop attempts to criticize Western art and music, this one is considered as the central point of his professional career. Cage's lack of interest in harmony and counterpoint redirected him to choose a path which was different from Schoenberg and his predecessors and while other musicians believed that harmonic structure pays attention to the musical sounds, he not only recognized structure as time divisions, but appointed everyday noise and silence as equivocal important factors as tonal sounds. Although there have been many biographies and researches on Cage, few studies have investigated the subject of this paper which explores the historical process of his music at the three levels of composition, notation, and audience to explain the course of these changes and their influence on the alternation of the dominant concepts of Western music in each phase. Therefore, the present study from a historical perspective tries to clarify the structural changes of Cage’s musical works to understand his view toward the mentioned transformations. In other words, the paper has raised this question that along with different ideas of Cage, how has the musical structure of his works changed? For this purpose, in the current research, two methods, historical and descriptive-analytical, have been used; the historical trend tries to explore the process and the way that ideas have been applied and depicts the milestones of his musical practice. The descriptive-analytical method aims at surveying structural changes of Cage’s musical works during the most important periods of his work. From a structural perspective and in a historical course, this research shows three milestones in applying Cage’s innovative ideas; the first one (late 1930s to late 1940s): Percussion and Prepared Piano; the second milestone (1950s): chance operation and graphic notation; the third milestone (late 1960s): elements of acting and theatrical performance. These three turning points in a historical course reveal a gradual and hierarchal change of a structure with a closed and solid space to a structure with an open and flexible space. In addition, in the analytical aspect, applying daily sounds and tools as the musical materials, putting aside the professional skills in producing and performing pieces, removing notation and score, replacing the oral presentation of musical ideas and generating audience are examined and justified as the central thesis of this research. By deconstruction of the generality of composition structures, notation, and audience status, Cage found a unique and personal structure that besides changing the dominant concepts in the Western music, presents a new definition for their meaning.

Keywords

References

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Journal of Fine Arts: Performing Arts & Music
Volume 24, Issue 2
June 2019
Pages 43-56

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