If John Cage would still be alive, he would have turned 100 this year. That fact has not slipped past the members of the FearNoMusic ensemble, which intends to celebrate Cage’s birthday in style with a very unique all-Cage concert. In collaboration with folks at YU, the contemporary art haven on the inner SE side of town, FearNoMusic will offer a very unique concert that will involve guest conspirators Carlos Kalmar, Robert Ainsley, and Kevin Walsh. It all starts at 8 pm on Friday, February 17th, at YU (800 SE 10th).
Here’s a description from the FMN website of what will take place:
Multiple live performances of Cage’s works will happen simultaneously throughout the 40,000 square feet of YU, including “Postcard from Heaven,” improvisatory ragas for 1-20 harps, “Lecture on Nothing” from Cage’s writings on Silence, read by Oregon Symphony Music Director, Carlos Kalmar, and “Fourteen,” a mysterious, late work that requires the piano’s strings be bowed with fishing line. The program will also include “Credo In Us” for 2 percussionists, prepared piano, radio and sound samples, as well as “Litany for the Whale,” a call-and-response work reminiscent of Gregorian Chant, performed by Portland Opera Chorus Master and conductor, Robert Ainsley, and renown Baritone, Kevin Walsh. And of course, no concert of Cage’s music would be complete without a performance of the (notorious) completely silent work, 4’33″…
$25 general admission, $12 students, $15 seniors. Tickets may be available at YU the night of the performance, but advance purchase is highly recommended. Minors must be accompanied by parent or legal guardian. To order by phone: (503) 236-7996. Student and senior tickets are only available to purchase in person at outlets or on the evening of the event at YU. Students: limit 1 per student with current school ID. Seniors: adults over the age of 62 with valid drivers license or ID, limit 1 per customer.
James Bash writes articles for a variety of publications, including magazines such as Opera America, Open Spaces, Opera, MUSO, International Arts Manager, American Record Guide, Symphony, Opera Canada, and PSU Magazine. The newspapers include Crosscut, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, The Oregonian, The Columbian, The Portland Tribune, The Register-Guard, and Willamette Week. James has also written a number of articles for the Oregon Arts Commission and contributed articles to the 2nd edition of the Grove Dictionary of American Music. James was a fellow to the 2008 NEA Journalism Institute for Classical Music and Opera. He is a member of the Music Critics Association of North America (mcana.org) and lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife, Kathy.
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oh, this is gonna be a terrific evening!
that an un-caged ODDience can move to & fro in a “free range” fashion is a particularly delicious cagean treat.
i’m there.
I’m there too with a crew of four, trying to capture as many bits and bytes as possible – about a dozen mics, several tracking rigs, 3 cameras – over 500-feet of cabling – just know we’ll miss something, but would Cage care?
BTW: anyone on the scene is part of the show, gather something memorable for our roving on-the-spot interview cam.
Jackie T. Gabel – NPM