John Cage
American composer, philosopher, writer and printmaker. He was educated in California and then made a study tour of Europe (1930-31), concentrating on art, architecture and music. On his return to the USA he studied music with Richard Buhlig, Adolph Weiss, Henry Cowell and Arnold Schoenberg; in 1934 he abandoned abstract painting for music. An interest in extending the existing range of percussion instruments led him, in 1940, to devise the 'prepared piano' (in which the sound is transformed by the insertion of various objects between the strings) and to pioneer electronic sound sources.
American composer, philosopher, writer and printmaker. He was educated in California and then made a study tour of Europe (1930-31), concentrating on art, architecture and music. On his return to the USA he studied music with Richard Buhlig, Adolph Weiss, Henry Cowell and Arnold Schoenberg; in 1934 he abandoned abstract painting for music. An interest in extending the existing range of percussion instruments led him, in 1940, to devise the 'prepared piano' (in which the sound is transformed by the insertion of various objects between the strings) and to pioneer electronic sound sources.
Two2 (2CD)
Landmark recording of John Cage's late work for two pianos, played by Mark Knoop and Philip Thomas. Uniquely for Cage's number pieces, Two2 doesn't use time brackets, so duration is open and left to the musicians' 'inner clock'. Previous recordings h…
A Cage of saxophones 1
Between 1983 and 1991 John cage wrote three pieces specifically for saxophones, Four5, Five4 and Hymnkus, which are combined here for the first time on CD. In addition, Cage authorized Ulrich Krieger's arrangement for saxophone of Ryoanji. Krieger al…
The Number Pieces 2: Five³
During the last few years of his life, John Cage wrote many pieces in the same general vein as Five3. They are often referred to as "the number pieces." This references the titles of the pieces, which are all simply the number of the performers. S…
Cage Edition Vol.52 : The Works for Percussion 4
**CD Edition** A Flower; The Wonderful Widow of Eighteen Springs; 51’15.657” for a speaking percussionist (realization Whiting); Music for Two (By One) (realization Whiting) — Bonnie Whiting, voice & percussion + Allen OTTE/John CAGE: Connecting Egyp…
Klang Der Wandlungen
From the liner notes by Jakob Ullmann (translated by Peter Gebert and Molly McDolan): "It was during a break in the inaugural meeting of the East German section of the IGNM (International Society for Contemporary Music) in March of 1990 when Reinhard…
Winter Music (1957)
John Cage’s 1957 composition in a visceral realisation for four pianos, played by John Tilbury, Philip Thomas, Mark Knoop and Catherine Laws.
“Chance procedures were used to assign each of the pianists five of the twenty pages of the score. The p…
Variations IV, Vol. II
A 1965 journey into found sound; this is John Cage. Another seminal volume of indeterminate music, from an icon of experimental sounds. Reissued for the first time and thematically on gorgeous clear vinyl! It could be argued that there is no more …
Variations IV, Vol. I
"Due to unprecedented demand" for the first volume of Everest's 1965 release of John Cage's Variations IV (perhaps unique at the time given the experimental nature of the material), a second selection of music culled from Cage and associate David Tud…
John Cage / Christian Wolff
Jeanne Dielman present a reissue John Cage and Christian Wolff's self-titled album, originally released in 1963 on legendary Times Records. This album was an early showcase of both 20th century composers's experimental chops, and is highly regarde…
Complete Song Books
... to consider the Song Books as a work of art is nearly impossible. Who would dare? It resembles a brothel, doesn't it?" --John Cage. Complete Song Books, volume three in the Perihel series on Karlrecords, along with La Legende d'Eer and Douze Inv…
Early Electronic & Tape Music
2016 repress. "I believe the use of noise to make music will continue and increase until we reach a music produced through the aid of electrical instruments which will make available for musical purposes any and all sounds that can be heard." --John …
San Francisco Museum Of Art, January 16th, 1965
Recorded live by KPFA Radio in the halls of the sculpture court of the San Francisco Museum of Art on January 16, 1965, the day of 39th birthday of fellow pianist and longtime associate David Tudor, this historic concert with John Cage opens with a d…
Variations IV
Anything can happen and often does. This is John Cage. A seminal example of indeterminate music from an icon on experimental sounds. This work was originally used as music for the choreographed piece by Merce Cunningham, "Field Dances," with stage an…
The 25-Year Retrospective Concert Of The Music Of John Cage
Recorded live at Town Hall, NYC in May of 1958, this historic concert (organized by Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg) was a retrospective of Cage’s work from 1934 to the present. The set documents the concert held in the town hall of New York C…
John Cage Anniversary 1912-2012, The Number Pieces
Some of the most mysterious and meditative pieces by the legendary John Cage’s (1912-1992) performed by The Barton Workshop, an Amsterdam-based ensemble founded by the legendary American composer-trombonist James Fulkerson. Number Pieces, fortyeight…
Hildegard von Bingen : John Cage
Two ways of hearing these two sets of 9 pieces:first separate, then alternating. And all of a sudden 800 years of temporal distance seem to dissolve and the pieces communicate with each other. Isn’t one even tempted to think, that John Cage wrote his…
for seven players
Seven (1988), 15 similar events (2002) Let’s assume, that art music as a field of creative cognitive activity is interrelated with the scientific paradigm and that its structure, therefore, at least partially reflects the contemporary way of lookin…
One9
“sounds brushed into existence as in oriental calligraphy" (Cage) the sounds in one9 are single tones and chords, up to six part harmonies. how do sounds come into existence, how do they gain focus, how do they resolve, how do they merge into one…
early music
“The room I entered was a dream of this room.” “It wasn't the hole in the landscape that gladdened us, it was the invitation to the weather to drop in anytime.” John Ashbery (both quotations from: Your Name Here 2000) “...all the hard dry …
Empty Words
"Empty Words" begins by omitting sentences, has only phrases, words, syllables and letters. The second part omits the phrases, has only words, syllables and letters. The third part omits the words, has only syllables and letters. And the last par…