John Cage: Bacchanale (1938/1940)

John Cage (1912-1992): Bacchanale, for prepared piano (1938/1940).

Margaret Lang Ten, pianoforte preparato.

Cover image: painting by Blinky Palermo (part.)

Bacchanale is Cage's first work for prepared piano. He intended to write a piece for percussion ensemble, but the performance hall being too small, he started experimenting with objects inside the piano. The preparations are quite simple: weather-stripping, pieces of rubber, screws and bolts, placed between the strings.
"Syvilla [Fort] had to, in order to graduate, be responsible for an entire concert. And she could use dancers in the school, or if she wanted, dancers from outside the school. She had to be responsible for the costume designing, the sets, and so on. But she could call on anybody she wanted- -so long as she could pay for it. (...) So everybody did everything for nothing. There was only one dictate with respect to music, that I had to discuss what she chose in the way of music with John and with her. And John would write two pieces, at least, for her, so he would compose pieces for her." (from: "BONNIE BIRD GUNDLACH: DANCER AND DANCE EDUCATOR. Interviews Conducted by William Riess and Heidi Gundlach- Smith July to November 1994". The Bancroft Library. University of California, Berkeley.).

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