An alphabetical press release about 4'33"
1 - First off, I have to thank Mimi and Ben for their beautiful performances - of 4'33" and of their own piece off of their new album. Thank you thank you. Thanks also to Kyle Gann for sharing his knowledge of the piece with all of us who were there. And thanks to Carl Van Brunt, and Josephine Bloodgood and the people at the Woodstock Artist's Association and Museum for hosting this beautiful concert. Thank you to each and every one of you for making my dream an even better reality. The show was spectacular.
4'33" - Here's the piece, with a short introduction, being performed in England.
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H- Hurricane. Hurricane Irene caused the rescheduling of this concert to Saturday, September 10, from the anniversary date of August 29. Same place, same program, but now Sept. 10 at 2:30pm.
I - Ink. A nice article in the Woodstock Times by Paul Smart on 4'33" and this performance.
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Kyle Gann on John Cage's 4'33" from cambiz a. khosravi on Vimeo.
L - A nice essay I found online by Larry J. Solomon about 4'33" can be read here.
M - Mimi Goese. This is Mimi's first time performing this piece. Here's her Wikipedia page, and here's a little blurb about her from her cd release press release: Goese is known as the lead singer/co-songwriter of Hugo Largo, the critically acclaimed minimalist punk/pop group who released two albums on Brian Eno’s Opal label in the ’80s. After touring with musician/producer Hector Zazou and co-writing/singing on the Moby album Everything is Wrong, Goese’s solo album Soak was released by Luaka Bop, David Byrne’s label.
4'33" - Here's the piece, with a short introduction, being performed in England.
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A - The Wikipedia entry on anechoic chambers.
B - Ben Neill. Ben teaches 4'33" in one of his classes at Ramapo College in NJ. He has performed a number of Cage's pieces and has worked with him directly, but this will be his first time performing 4'33". Here is Ben'swikipedia page and here is a short blurb about him from the press release for his new cd, a collaboration with his co-performer Mimi Goese:
Neill is a composer, performer, producer, and inventor of the mutantrumpet, a hybrid electro-acoustic instrument. He has recorded eight CDs of his music on labels including Universal/Verve, Thirsty Ear, Astralwerks and Six Degrees. His most recent CD Night Science was released in 2009 on Thirsty Ear.
C - CD. Ben and Mimi, who will be performing 4'33" on August 29, Saturday, Sept. 10 at 2:30 pm. have a cd coming out on August 30. Here's a blurb from the press release:
Following critically acclaimed performances of their musical theater piece Persephone, Mimi Goese & Ben Neill unveil Songs for Persephone August 30 on Ramseur Records. Songs for Persephone creates a vehicle for Goese’s vocal and performance style—which Rolling Stone likens to “eloquent sonic ballet”—as well as for Neill’s performance on his self-designed mutantrumpet, “a schizophrenic trumpet [used] to create art music for the people (WIRED).”
Here's a picture of them:
D - Date and time and all that. August 29, 2011. Saturday, Sept. 10, 2011. Woodstock Artists Association Museum. Right in the middle of Woodstock, NY. 7 pm sharp. Should be done by 7:30. 2:30pm sharp. Should be done by 3:30 (see the second entry for "P" for more information.)
E - Everything. And nothing. See here.
G - Gann. Kyle Gann. Who literally wrote the book on 4'33" and has graciously agreed to come answer some questions after the performance. Wow. What a treat. (See "K")
H- Hurricane. Hurricane Irene caused the rescheduling of this concert to Saturday, September 10, from the anniversary date of August 29. Same place, same program, but now Sept. 10 at 2:30pm.
K - A really nice video about 4'33" with Kyle Gann:
Kyle Gann on John Cage's 4'33" from cambiz a. khosravi on Vimeo.
L - A nice essay I found online by Larry J. Solomon about 4'33" can be read here.
M - Mimi Goese. This is Mimi's first time performing this piece. Here's her Wikipedia page, and here's a little blurb about her from her cd release press release: Goese is known as the lead singer/co-songwriter of Hugo Largo, the critically acclaimed minimalist punk/pop group who released two albums on Brian Eno’s Opal label in the ’80s. After touring with musician/producer Hector Zazou and co-writing/singing on the Moby album Everything is Wrong, Goese’s solo album Soak was released by Luaka Bop, David Byrne’s label.
N - Norm Magnusson. Producer. Impresario, artist, advertising curmudgeon, and founder of the art movement funism.
P - Program from the first performance of 4'33", which took place in Woodstock, NY, 1952, presented by the Woodstock Artist's Association.
P - The program for this performance:
R - Robert Rauschenberg, whose "White Painting (Three Panel)" (from the collection of SFMoMA) was a major influence on Cage's decision to compose 4'33" and perhaps on his decision to give his piece 3 movements.
S - Silence. A short video by Maestro Cage on this topic.
T- Tacet. Say no more.
V - A very informative smattering of reviews for Kyle Gann's book on 4'33" There's no such thing as silence.
W - The Woodstock Artist's Association. You can find out more about this fine organization on their website,http://www.woodstockart.org/
