JOHN CAGE CENTENNIAL TRIBUTE (2012) Program Introduction
- Apr 29, 2020
- 6 min read
Updated: 1 hour ago
This Tribute honors John Cage (1912–1992), one of the most influential and visionary artists of the twentieth century, whose groundbreaking work in music, visual art, literature, and performance continues to inspire artists across disciplines and shape contemporary culture.
It was presented from February through 2012 at international locations and online. Tour locations included New York City–Big Screen Plaza; Australia–Cultural Centre Screen, Perth; The Concourse Screen, Sydney; Federation Square, Melbourne; Tenerife Canary Island, Spain–Espacio Enter project at Tenerife Espacio de Las Artes; Zero1 San Jose, California; and the Composers Now Festival, NYC.
The Tribute includes stories, and visual and sound works by John Cage's friends, colleagues, and international artists who have been inspired by him. The breadth of his influence is immeasurable. As architect Frank Gehry observed:
I think John was questioning conventions and in questioning them he was questioning our lives and our world around us. They were very profound questions and they resonated profoundly in the art world and the music world… and every body else’s world who touched it. And I think it’s had its impact on the general public… whether they know it or not. …It’s been absorbed and subsumed into the mass culture.
Beginning in the 1950s, John Cage's work inspired generations of artists––from figures in 1960s Pop Art to later experimental rock musicians such as Frank Zappa, Sonic Youth and Stereolab––and contributed to the development of electronic music. His work also influenced the eclectic mix of postmodern aesthetics, which found its voice in the Fluxus movement. The “happening” or “event performance” was first explored in Cage’s compositions and has become a model for participatory performance in contemporary mass culture.
THE REVENGE OF THE DEAD INDIANS: IN MEMORIAM JOHN CAGE (1993)
by Henning Lohner
(Trailer)
This unique 130-minute “composed film” features well known and unknown personalities conversing about Cage. Streaming Museum’s exclusive screenings took place on 2/12 and 2/18, sponsored by Mode Records. Director Henning Lohner worked with John Cage during his later years, including collaborating with Cage on his only film, One11. During that time, Lohner filmed interviews and footage with Cage, and after Cage’s death decided to assemble some of it into this unique “composed film” based on musical principles – a tribute to Cage, his thoughts, music and influence. The film also features 42 personalities – from the well known (actors, architects, artists, choreographers, composers, theoreticians, writers) to the unknown (like street cleaners and market vendors) – in conversation with each other. The result is an unexpected and fascinating combination of intellectual thought, viewpoints and opinions. “The Revenge of the Dead Indians” is neither documentary nor feature film. The thematic story development is a combination of “found” video and audio landscapes along with theatrically directed readings and interviews. Each scene of the film is complete in itself as its own narrative entity, yet simultaneously contributes to the linear progression of the story line. Lohner’s goal was to honor the creative credo of composer John Cage, to whom the film is dedicated. Attention is paid to “forgotten” landscapes: places we overlook because they are the everyday and the ordinary. Concert performances incorporated in the film were recorded live during the “Musicircus” homage at Symphony Space in New York, November 1, 1992, and at the John Cage music festival at the “Akademie der Schönen Künste” in East Berlin, August 1, 1990. This sound and visual material was edited to more than 1200 cuts before the final film length of 130 minutes was reached. The shortest scene has the duration of exactly one frame, the longest scene has the duration of exactly 4 minutes, 33 seconds.
ORDER The Revenge of the Dead Indians: In Memoriam John Cage from Mode Records
moderecords.com/order
Mode’s John Cage Edition is now at volume 44. Mode’s goal is to eventually record and release all of Cage’s music, which began with the composer supervised early volumes 28 years ago. moderecords.com/profiles/johncage.html#editions
VIDEO TRIBUTE
Among the 28 visual and sound artists featured in the collection of work curated by Streaming Museum for the John Cage Centennial Tribute are: Emanuel Pimenta, Monika Weiss, Phillip Stearns, Loris Greaud and Lee Ranaldo, Leslie Flanigan; a collection of artful scores by Stephen Vitiello and Adachi Tomomi and from the book “Notations 21″ (2009) by Theresa Sauer inspired by “Notations” (1969) by John Cage; and architect Frank Gehry’s words about John Cage.
HOMAGE
Streaming Museum's homage to John Cage includes stories and work created by his friends, collaborators, and contemporary visual and sound artists he has influenced
Friends and Collaborators William Anastasi Dove Bradshaw Joel Chadabe Emanuel Pimenta Elliot Sharp Allegra Fuller Snyder Bernadette Speach
Video art curated by Tom Shannon, artist/inventor Sea-Tails, 1983 - a film installation by Jackie Matisse, David Tudor, Hillary Davies, by Tom Kovachevich
Contemporary sound and visual artists ADACHI Tomomi Steve Antosca Kyong Mee Choi Phil Dadson Lesley Flanigan Richard Garet Loris Gréaud Martha Mooke Marcin Ramocki Marina Rosenfeld Phillip Stearns Marty St. James Susana Sulic Dante Tanzi Robert Scott Thompson Stephen Vitiello Monika Weiss
Publication and video
Theresa Sauer, composer and author of Notations 21 (2009) produced a video tribute to Cage including a selection of composers in her book about contemporary composers and creative notation, that was inspired by John Cage’s book, Notations (1969).
Press announcement
Streaming Museum Presents Reflections on John Cage’s Influence on the Arts and Mass Culture
John Cage had a profound impact on the arts and mass culture according to architect Frank Gehry, who reflects upon Cage’s legacy in the 1993 film Revenge of the Dead Indians: In Memoriam John Cage. In the film, directed by Lenning Lohner, Gehry notes that Cage questioned conventions “and in questioning them he was questioning our lives and our world around us.” In this spirit, Streaming Museum launched a John Cage Centennial Tribute on February 1, featuring John Cage and a collection of visual and sound art and stories by contemporary multi-media artists he has influenced. Inviting further questioning and reflections, this month the museum will present two exclusive screenings of this unique “composed film.” The entire Tribute program will be on view at StreamingMuseum.org through 2012 and select works will be exhibited in public spaces later this year. The Composers Now Festival, founded by internationally renowned composer/conductor, Tania Leon, will feature Streaming Museum’s online program through February 29th. The Festival, now in its third season, is the product of ongoing collaboration between cultural centers throughout NYC who present performances of music by living composers. Post-performance discussions with the composers constitute an important aspect of the programming, engaging audience members and furthering appreciation. Streaming Museum’s Tribute program
Exclusive screenings of The Revenge of the Dead Indians: In Memoriam John Cage (1993) by filmmaker Henning Lohner, sponsored by Mode Records, February 12 at 2 pm and February 18 at 8pm.
Video program curated by Artist / inventor Tom Shannon including Sea-Tails (1983), a film installation by Jackie Matisse, David Tudor, Hillary Davies; and the premiere of 6 AV, by Tom Kovachevich.
The premiere of Notations 21, a video that includes a collection of interviews, music and scores by composers presented in Notations 21, a book by Theresa Sauer inspired by John Cage’s book Notations (1969). Featured composers include Keren Rosenbaum, Joseph Pignato, Michael J. Schumacher, John Kannenberg, Chris Chalfant. The Notations 21 video also offers an opportunity to view and hear scores by composers around the world including Jennifer Walshe, Makoto Nomura, Halim El-Dabh, Takayuki Rai, Guilliermo Gregorio, Rajesh Mehta, Leon Schidlowsky, and Karlheinz Stockhausen, Earle Brown and others.
Streaming Museum’s Tribute presents visual and sound art and stories about John Cage’s lasting influence on subsequent generations including Cage collaborators and friends, William Anastasi, Dove Bradshaw, Joel Chadabe, Emanuel Pimenta, Allegra Fuller Snyder, Bernadette Speach; and contemporary multi-media artists, ADACHI Tomomi, Steve Antosca, Kyong Mee Choi, Phil Dadson, Lesley Flanigan, Richard Garet, Loris Greaud, Martha Mooke, Marcin Ramocki, Marina Rosenfeld, Elliot Sharp, Phillip Stearns, Marty St. James, Susana Sulic, Dante Tanzi, Robert Scott Thompson, Stephen Vitiello, Monika Weiss.
Artists will be joining the program throughout the year.
Streaming Museum is a hybrid museum that presents multi-media exhibitions in cyberspace and in public spaces on 7 continents. It also presents live programming at partnering cultural institutions worldwide.
Composers Now Festival celebrates living composers, the diversity of their voices and the significance of their musical contributions to our society. During the month of February, Composers Now presents dozens of concerts in venues throughout the city. From jazz to indie to classical to electronic, join us on a sonic journey through the landscape of the arts of our time. For more information visit composers-now.org.
