John Cage and David Tudor: Correspondence On Interpretation And Performance Reprint Edition
Author(s): Martin Iddon (Author)
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Publication Date: March 5, 2015
Edition: Reprint
Language: English
Print length: 240 pages
ISBN-10: 1107507804
ISBN-13: 9781107507807
Book Description
John Cage is best known for his indeterminate music, which leaves a significant level of creative decision-making in the hands of the performer. But how much licence did Cage allow? Martin Iddon’s book is the first volume to collect the complete extant correspondence between the composer and pianist David Tudor, one of Cage’s most provocative and significant musical collaborators. The book presents their partnership from working together in New York in the early 1950s, through periods on tour in Europe, until the late stages of their work from the 1960s onwards, carried out almost exclusively within the frame of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company. Tackling the question of how much creative flexibility Tudor was granted, Iddon includes detailed examples of the ways in which Tudor realised Cage’s work, especially focusing on Music of Changes to Variations II, to show how composer and pianist influenced one another’s methods and styles.
Editorial Reviews
Review
“There is no other such study so thorough, indeed no other collection of primary materials which approaches this one in depth. Nor a study full of such useful and informative contextualisation and commentary for that matter. It’s a major contribution to its specific area, and to scholarship on one of the major fields in twentieth century musical development. Very well produced, it carries a strong recommendation.” Classical Net
“… one is impressed by both Tudor’s commitment and Iddon’s persistence … Recommended. Upper-level undergraduates and above; general readers.” J. Behrens, Choice
Book Description
Martin Iddon discusses one of the twentieth century’s most provocative musical collaborations: between composer John Cage and pianist David Tudor.
About the Author
Martin Iddon is Associate Professor of Music at the University of Leeds. He previously lectured at University College Cork and Lancaster University, and studied composition and musicology at the Universities of Durham and Cambridge. His musicological research largely focuses on post-war music in Germany and the United States of America and has been published in numerous leading journals, including Musical Quarterly, twentieth-century music and the Contemporary Music Review. His music has been performed in Europe, North America and Australasia and has been featured on BBC Radio 3, Radio New Zealand and the Österreichischer Rundfunk.
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