From the late 1940s until his death in 1992, John Cage was a central figure in the American avant-garde. He is most commonly known for his silent composition 4'33" of 1952 whose three movements are performed at a piano without a single note being played.

Cage was an early composer of what he called 'chance composition' in music, a method that influenced the radical shift in modern dance initiated by his long-term partner and collaborator, Merce Cunningham, as well as influencing and working with visual artists such as Robert Rauschenberg, Andy Warhol and Jasper Johns. Cage was well known for his non-standard use of musical instruments and his pioneering exploration of electronic music.

Cage invented his Musicircus in 1967 for a performance in the Stock Pavilion at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. This three-hour performance is based on compositions principally by Cage and features live and pre-recorded electronics, as well as traditional instruments.

The performers in this version of Musicircus – arranged for Tate Modern by Richard Bernas – range from live electronic composer/performers, including Scanner and Robert Worby, to renowned new-music specialists, among them mezzo soprano Linda Hirst and the Kreutzer String Quartet. Young ensembles from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and Goldsmiths College, and Marina Rosenfeld – leading her infamous electric-guitar ensemble, the Sheer Frost Orchestra – also perform.

Gramophone Award-winning conductor Richard Bernas collaborated closely with Cage, performing many world and European premieres with him.

Part of UBS Openings: The Long Weekend - Abstract Sunday

See Collection Display: Material Gestures

  Music & Performance