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Student #42 PH 331 Composer Assignment The Music of John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. was an American composer who lived from 1912-1992. His work was more of a modern renaissance man than an ordinary composer though, as much combined theory, writing, and philosophy into his compositions. He is known for being one of the leading figures in avant-garde music as many of his pieces do not follow the rules of modern compositions. He rarely uses instruments in the way that they were traditionally intended to be used, instead his focus is how sound acts organically without the rigid rules of traditional music composition imposed upon them. Many first time listeners of Cage’s music find it difficult to comprehend due to it’s non-traditional and seemingly nonsensical sound. Despite this, Cage has been recognized by many as an artist who has revolutionized the way people interact with music and sound. One of the main themes in Cage’s music has to do with the interplay between silence and sound. Cage was fascinated by silence, and much of his work intentionally utilizes silence as a main element. For example, one of his most famous works “4’33” is simply a live piece where the performer sits in silence for a given period of time. The work is meant to highlight the ambient sounds made by the audience, the room, or any other happenings outside of the piece itself. Cage’s idea was to highlight the sounds heard by the audience during this time, which are not determined by the composer but by chance instead. This piece as well as other works by Cage reflect a philosophy of indeterminacy that his work became known for, and inspired other artists such as Brian Eno who’s “Music for Airports” used some of the same theories of indeterminacy in ambient music. John Cage’s studies of eastern religion and philosophy influence his music style significantly. Cage would often use the ancient Chinese I Ching text which was traditionally used for divination to compose works. The idea was to bring together a piece by leaving the order to chance rather than the traditional method of composition used by other artists. Cage felt that this method reflected the natural patterns of nature in his compositions rather than forcing his will onto a piece of music. It seems that his main goal was usually to reflect the patterns in nature rather than imposing rules developed by man. Though often misunderstood or controversial, John Cage has had an undeniable influence on experimental and ambient music and modern music in general. His combination of philosophy with music and performance art is inspiring as well since it challenges the classic idea of what music is and opens up new insight to those willing to listen. He helped open up the western world to ideas rooted in eastern philosophy and minimalism and continues to inspire musicians to this day. "4'33" by John Cage John Cage about silence "Water Walk" by John Cage