Reading Blog #2

This article about John Cage's "4:33" talks about the difference between what is art and what isn't, along with the importance of challenging tradition. The piece does not contain any traditional music at the piano, which offended many people at the time of his performance. Silence was intended by not playing the piano, yet, it was not silent. You could still hear the naturally occurring sounds around you, such as breathing and rain. The intention Cage put behind this piece is that anything can be considered music, including those sounds we take for granted every day.

Another notable idea behind this piece and Cage's music is that he didn't care about applause (or lack of applause). The article from the New Yorker states, "As much as any artist, he enjoyed receiving applause and recognition, but he had no need for wider public or institutional approval." This interests me because we often measure success by what other people think, such as what grade you get on an essay or art piece. Cage is telling us to measure success on our own, not by what others think of you.

"4:33" shifts the purpose of music away from the composer and towards the audience. This piece forces people to look deeper into their everyday lives and break out of a traditional mold. These everyday sounds are as worthy of attention as traditional music is. Cage's impact is still felt, making us reevaluate what is considered art. This is seen in the debate of AI art. This article was extremely informative and I enjoyed reading it.