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Austin360 blogs > Austin Arts: Seeing Things > Archives > 2012 > January > 27 > Entry
John Cage here, John Cage there — Cage everywhere
Groundbreaking composer John Cage would have turned 100 this year. And hopefully he would have been thrilled that his innovative compositions are getting star treatment by younger artists, particularly in Austin.
This spring, Austin has a flurry of performances of Cage’s still avant-garde music.
‘Matrices & Entropy’
Music for percussion & electronics by Cage, Pluta and Vinjar featuring Line Upon Line
Line upon Line percussion ensemble will play the rarely performed Cage piece ‘Variations II’ (1961). Written for any number of musicians and any number of sound-producing actions, the Line Upon Line presentation will utilize metallic instruments.
Also on the program, New York composer Sam Pluta will deliver a batch of his adventurous works for percussion, among them, Pluta’s static-infected piece ‘Matrices’ that warps percussion music almost beyond recognition.
Also on the program is the Texas premiere of +/- by Anders Vinjar, a piece for a large selection of percussion instruments and electronic sounds.
When: 8 p.m. Jan. 28
Where: Mexican American Cultural Center, 600 River St.
Tix: $15-$12.
www.amoda.org
‘SoundSpace: Musicircus’
Steven Parker, musician-in-residence at the Blanton Museum of Art presents Cage’s ‘Musicircus,” a 1967 piece which Cage created as simply an invitation for musicians to gather and play.
Parker’s rounded up a crew of adventurous musicians including pianist Michelle Schumann who specializes in interpreting Cage’s music and has staged an annual Cage birthday concert for the past decade. Schumann will play some of Cage’s works for toy piano in the Blanton’s vast auditorium.
Also on the bill is the New Music Co-op, Bel Cuore Sax Quartet and the East Side Arkestra (a Sun Ra tribute combo). Getting a premiere will be new works by Andy Sigler and Pierce Gradone, for electric trombone and an amplified cactus — yes, we said amplified cactus.
The music will be paired with dancers from Ballet Austin, with choreography by Michelle Thompson.
When: 2 p.m. Feb. 4
Where: Blanton Museum of Art, MLK, Jr. Blvd. and Congress Ave.
Tix: Free with museum admission ($5-$9)
www.blantonmuseum.org
And then in March, adventurous New York-based ensemble So Percussion will present a two-concert celebration of Cage’s music at UT, “We Are All Going in Different Directions.” Click here more information.
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