Composed in collaboration with Lou Harrison, indepedantly from eachother. Cage composed parts 1 and 3
(soprano and tenor), Harrison parts 2 and 4 (alto and bass). Dynamics are scarcely indicated, but the instrumentation
is specific, although substitutions are allowed. They basically agreed on composing 200 measures. Cage's parts have
a rhythmic structure of 14 times 14 measures (plus a coda of 4 measures), using the number series 4,3,2,5.
The instruments used are bells, brakedrums, sistra, gongs, tam-tams and thundersheet. There is no progress from soft
to loud in the work, it is just a continuous festive whole.
|