Composer

:

John Cage

Genre

:

Chamber

Compose Date

:

1989

Average_duration

:

8:10

Composed Improvisation is a musical composition by John Cage, an American composer, philosopher, and writer. The piece was composed in 1961 and premiered on May 15, 1961, at the Merce Cunningham Dance Company's studio in New York City. The composition is a part of Cage's larger body of work that explores the relationship between chance and intention in music. Composed Improvisation is a solo piano piece that consists of five movements. Each movement is characterized by a different set of instructions that the performer must follow. The first movement, titled "Forgetting," instructs the performer to play a series of notes and then forget them. The second movement, "Echo," instructs the performer to play a note and then wait for its echo to fade away before playing another note. The third movement, "Multiplication," instructs the performer to play a note and then double it, playing the same note one octave higher. The fourth movement, "Division," instructs the performer to play a note and then divide it, playing the same note one octave lower. The final movement, "Silence," instructs the performer to play nothing for a period of time. The characteristics of Composed Improvisation are rooted in Cage's philosophy of indeterminacy. The piece is not meant to be played the same way twice, as the performer is given a set of instructions but is also encouraged to improvise and make their own choices. The piece is also characterized by its use of silence, which is a recurring theme in Cage's work. Overall, Composed Improvisation is a unique and experimental piece of music that challenges traditional notions of composition and performance. Its use of chance and intention, as well as its emphasis on silence, make it a significant contribution to the avant-garde music movement of the 20th century.

More....