John Cage (1912-1992) remains one of the most influential and provocative figures in 20th-century music and art. His radical ideas about sound, silence, and chance challenged conventional notions of musical composition and performance, paving the way for generations of experimental artists. In his autobiographical statement from 1990, Cage reflects on the key experiences, individuals, and philosophies that shaped his groundbreaking work. This exploration provides invaluable insights into the mind of a visionary artist who redefined the boundaries of artistic expression.
“I once asked Aragon, the historian, how history was written. He said, ‘You have to invent it.’ When I wish as now to tell of critical incidents, persons, and events that have influenced my life and work, the true answer is all of the incidents were critical, all of the people influenced me, everything that happened and that is still happening influences me.” – John Cage
Early Influences: Family, Invention, and a Rejection of Convention
Cage’s upbringing was marked by intellectual curiosity and a spirit of innovation. He describes his father as an inventor, instilling in him a problem-solving approach and a disregard for limitations. “He told me that if someone says ‘can’t’ that shows you what to do.” This emphasis on pushing boundaries and seeking unconventional solutions became a defining characteristic of Cage’s artistic journey.
His mother, while less directly involved in the world of invention, possessed a strong sense of social awareness and engagement, founding the Lincoln Study Club and working as a Women’s Club editor. This parental dynamic, with his father’s inventive spirit and his mother’s social consciousness, created a fertile ground for Cage’s own unique blend of artistic experimentation and engagement with the world around him.
Cage’s early experiences with formal education were formative, albeit in a negative sense. He recounts his disillusionment with the conformity he observed in college, famously choosing to read the first book by an author whose name began with “Z” in the library stacks rather than the assigned reading material. This anecdote illustrates his early rejection of institutional norms and his embrace of independent exploration and discovery – principles that would become central to his artistic philosophy.
European Exposure: Art, Architecture, and the Seeds of Musical Innovation
A pivotal period in Cage’s development was his time in Europe. Initially pursuing architecture, he was introduced to modern art and music, sparking a shift in his creative focus. Encounters with figures like José Pijoan and a modern architect broadened his artistic horizons, although a defining moment of clarity arrived when he realized architecture was not his sole passion.
Reading Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass ignited a renewed enthusiasm for America and prompted his return home, but not before a crucial experience in Seville. Observing the “multiplicity of simultaneous visual and audible events all going together in one’s experience and producing enjoyment” on a street corner, Cage recognized the potential for art to embrace the unplanned and the everyday – a precursor to his later explorations of chance and indeterminacy.
Musical Education and the Rejection of Harmony: Schoenberg and Percussion
Upon returning to California, Cage’s musical pursuits intensified. He studied with Richard Buhlig and Henry Cowell before seeking out the renowned composer Arnold Schoenberg. Schoenberg’s rigorous approach and emphasis on structural harmony proved incompatible with Cage’s developing sensibilities. Schoenberg famously declared, “You’ll come to a wall and won’t be able to get through,” regarding Cage’s lack of feeling for harmony. Cage’s defiant response, “Then I’ll spend my life knocking my head against that wall,” reveals his unwavering commitment to his own artistic path, even in the face of expert pronouncements.
This perceived limitation, however, became a catalyst for innovation. Inspired by filmmaker Oskar Fischinger’s statement that “Everything in the world has its own spirit which can be released by setting it into vibration,” Cage turned his attention to percussion. He began experimenting with everyday objects, exploring their sonic possibilities and composing music from “found” sounds and silences. This marked a radical departure from traditional Western musical instrumentation and harmony, establishing Cage as a pioneer in the realm of percussion music and sound art.
The Prepared Piano and Rhythmic Structure: Innovations at Cornish School
A significant breakthrough in Cage’s career occurred at the Cornish School in Seattle with the invention of the prepared piano. Faced with the practical challenge of creating percussion sounds for a dance piece in a space lacking a pit or wings, Cage ingeniously transformed a grand piano by inserting objects between its strings. This innovation yielded a percussive instrument with a unique sonic palette, bridging the gap between traditional piano and percussion ensemble and further expanding the definition of musical instruments.
At Cornish, Cage also developed his concept of “micro-macrocosmic rhythmic structure,” where the proportional relationships between the parts of a composition mirrored the relationships within smaller units. This structural approach, independent of traditional harmony, became a cornerstone of his compositional technique and a response to Schoenberg’s emphasis on harmonic structure. Furthermore, his exposure to Zen Buddhism at Cornish School began to shape his philosophical outlook, offering an alternative framework to Western psychoanalysis and influencing his understanding of music’s purpose.
John Cage and the Prepared Piano: A pivotal invention that expanded the sonic possibilities of music.
Embracing Silence and Chance: Zen Buddhism and Indeterminacy
Cage’s engagement with Zen Buddhism profoundly impacted his artistic direction, leading him to explore concepts of silence, non-intention, and chance. He questioned the conventional notion of music as communication, observing the subjective and often unpredictable reception of his compositions. Inspired by Indian philosophy and the writings of Ananda K. Coomaraswamy and Gira Sarabhai, Cage sought a deeper purpose for music, aligning it with the aim of “sobering and quieting the mind, thus making it susceptible to divine influences.”
His famous experience in the anechoic chamber at Harvard University revealed that silence is not merely the absence of sound but an internal phenomenon, “a change of mind, a turning around.” This realization led him to embrace silence as an integral element of his music and to explore “non-intention” as a compositional approach.
To realize this vision of non-intentional music, Cage adopted the I Ching, a Chinese divination text, as a chance operation tool. By using the I Ching to make compositional decisions, Cage relinquished personal control and embraced indeterminacy, allowing chance to shape the structure and details of his works. This radical approach challenged the traditional role of the composer as a deliberate and controlling creator, positioning them instead as a facilitator of sonic events.
4’33” and the Redefinition of Music: Hearing the Unintentional
Cage’s most iconic and controversial work, 4’33” (1952), exemplifies his embrace of silence and indeterminacy. The piece consists of three movements of silence, during which the audience is invited to listen to the ambient sounds of their environment. 4’33” provocatively redefines music by shifting the focus from intentional composition to unintentional sounds, highlighting the musical potential inherent in everyday life and the listener’s own perception.
Inspired by Robert Rauschenberg’s white paintings, which presented a blank canvas for ambient light and shadow, 4’33” encourages audiences to become aware of the sounds that are always present but often overlooked. It is a radical statement about the nature of music and art, challenging listeners to expand their definition of what constitutes musical experience.
The score for John Cage’s 4’33”, a revolutionary piece that challenges the definition of music.
Collaboration and Innovation: Cunningham, Tudor, and Beyond
Collaboration played a crucial role in Cage’s artistic development. His long-standing partnership with choreographer Merce Cunningham was particularly significant. Rejecting the traditional model of musical accompaniment to dance, Cage and Cunningham developed a collaborative approach where music and dance existed independently yet co-existently, each unfolding according to its own principles of chance and indeterminacy.
His collaborations with pianist David Tudor and later with other musicians like David Behrman, Gordon Mumma, and Takehisa Kosugi further expanded his sonic explorations, particularly in the realm of electronic music and live performance. These collaborations fostered a dynamic exchange of ideas and techniques, pushing the boundaries of musical performance and composition.
Later Years and Legacy: Mesostics, Prints, and Continued Exploration
In his later years, Cage continued to explore new avenues of creative expression, including writing, printmaking, and interdisciplinary projects. He developed the mesostic, a poetic form using chance operations, and created numerous prints and watercolors, often incorporating chance-determined processes and natural elements like stones and fire.
His Europeras 1 & 2, created for the Frankfurt Opera, extended his principles of indeterminacy and coexistence to all elements of theatrical production, including staging, costumes, and lighting. Even in his late works, such as the Freeman Etudes for violin, Cage remained committed to pushing the limits of performance and challenging conventional notions of musical virtuosity.
John Cage’s legacy extends far beyond the realm of music. His ideas about chance, silence, and indeterminacy have resonated across disciplines, influencing visual art, dance, literature, and philosophy. He remains a touchstone for artists seeking to break down boundaries, embrace the unexpected, and discover the musical potential in everyday life. His autobiographical statement offers a valuable window into the life and mind of an artistic innovator who profoundly reshaped our understanding of art and sound.
Author’s note: “An Autobiographical Statement” was written for the Inamori Foundation and delivered in Kyoto as a commemorative lecture in response to having received the Kyoto Prize in November 1989. It is a work in progress.
Editor’s note: John Cage delivered “An Autobiographical Statement” at Southern Methodist University on 17 April 1990, as part of the year‑long celebration of the Algur H. Meadows award for excellence in the arts given to Robert Rauschenberg. It first appeared in print in the Southwest Review, 1991. It is reprinted here with the kind permission of The John Cage Trust at Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.
