Cage’s and Cramb’s instrumental searches: Parallels and paradoxes
Abstract
Silence, sounding effects in the space, new timbre paints of instruments and techniques of the playing... Most American composers did not pass these characteristic phenomena of avant-garde music of the 20th century, but each of them found its own solution to the problem of new musical material, new instrumentation and new means of expressiveness, corresponding to the vanguard period.
Cage used in his compositions predominantly exotic, prepared instruments or environmental subjects which could produce musical sounds, according to Cage. «All that sounds around is music», he wrote. Cage’s approaches to the instruments aim achieving an «objective» sounding, not connected with something «too human» but providing achieving Buddhist «not acting», Nothing, Satori. Means of instrumental expression, like music in general, were used to realize the composer’s musical and aesthetical concept, based on religious and philosophical ideas of various kinds.
Keywords
About the Author
M. V. Pereverzeva
Russian State Social University;
Tchaikovsky Moscow State Conservatory
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Dr. Habil
4/1, Wilhelm Pik St., Moscow, 129226;
13/6 Bolshaya Nikitskaya Str., Moscow 125009
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Review
For citations:
Pereverzeva M.V. Cage’s and Cramb’s instrumental searches: Parallels and paradoxes. Bulletin of Vaganova Ballet Academy. 2019;(5):149-159. (In Russ.)
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