Robert Worby on John Cage's 4'33"
Robert Worby reflects on the first performance of John Cage's 4'33".
The Essay · BBC Radio 3
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Show Notes
Robert Worby's selected seismic moment in new music is the first performance of John Cage's controversial 4'33" and its impact on performers and audiences ever since.
The story of new music is peppered with events that have altered the course of musical history. For our New Year New Music season, we asked five Radio 3 presenters to each tell the story of one of these "seismic moments". From silence and ambient sounds to riot and revolution, these intriguing events have, in different ways, changed the progress of sound and culture - or, as one of our five suggests, have they?
Written and read by Robert Worby Produced by Elizabeth Allard.