John Cage would not be considered your typical pop icon musician. Many would even claim that his music is unworthy to be declared music. John Cage creates experimental sound productions. While doing so he questions the idea of what really is music. As well to the very way people play instruments even the very instruments themselves. Still fifty years later his sound productions bring question to what really is music.
When contemplating what John Cage was doing on stage walking around maneuvering and operating each contraption. It was clear to see the process, the thoughts behind what to the normal eye looked awkward and unfamiliar. Cage has been trained to read and produce music. What he has done with this classical training is take the next step by showing people the illusion of conventional music. That taking normal objects, not instruments, with process and understanding of sound can convey a song.
Prior too his performance it is announced that Cage has a stop watch to accompany his precise executions for each sound made. So instead of counting out beats and rhythms of the drums and guitar, he is counting when to drop the radio and water the flowers in an exact sequence of sounds. Music is the combination of mathematical sequences and sound. It is represented by symbols and when written out create a harmonious flowing math equation. Cage understands this and in doing so with the strangest of objects produces what is called a song.
So what is Cage doing? For what reason or purpose? At the time of his debut, it is important to consider the outside implications on society. It is a time of American success. A time where every house on the block looked the same and all had a bomb shelters because maybe just one day the Russians might send us to our doom. Now for an artist or musician at the time who are breaking boundaries and pushing limits of modern society. May have been in the eye of some government not very liked. In all odds they probably thought Cage was a crazy communist pushing propaganda through his commi instruments. Perhaps farfetched but pushing new ideas onto a society that may not be ready for what is presented could be a great risk.
While watching “Water Walk” for the first time I understood what Cage was doing was experimental and was pushing musical boundaries. It was not until turning the screen off and just acquiring the sounds produced in his music. It finally made sense and in some strange way all the sounds balanced each other. While denying sight it allowed only one sense to take in the performance. It was completely different for the second time. Instead of focusing on the movements of Cage and already interpreting the sound about to be made. It allows the main focus to siphon into the sequence of sound. Elaborate in his process Cage shows his new perception of music.
Now why does music have to be a certain way? We created the idea of music, the process, the instruments. Why can we not change these ways? Through the song “Water Walk”, Cage intends to communicate that the process of music is not limited. Limited to what produces the sounds to the way the production is presented. Allowing the audience to engage in the idea of what music is.
