three passacaglias and a coda for John Cage

three passacaglias and a coda for John Cage’s one hundredth birthday

i.

Composer, artist, gnostic, explorer’s

centennial anniversary. Gaudeamus. Everything

changes. Avant garde-ist enters

chamber (anechoic), gets ears

cleaned. Afterwards generally employs

cointosses and graphs events

chronologically—audible gleanings egolessly

composed, anarchistically generated. Everything

changes. Aural gnosis experienced.

Chance actions generating ephemeral

compositions and gaining emptiness,

challenging all givens. Everything

changes. A great experimenter

come and gone. Eternity…

ii.

(Cage's story about dinner with D. T.  Suzuki, syntax retained, words  replaced randomly)

Collateral approximation gerrymandered everything

circa astronomer, garbled extermination

compendium adlibs gapingly. Everything

committed. Astride gnarl, everything

calibrated a gopher. Excuse

conjugated abroad ‘gainst everything.

Chorale aped gaps, except

cumulative abduction, gimlet embarrassed,

conducively apathetic. Global, everything

cured astigmatisim, gritty era

ceased after germane except

cinema. Among guts everything

coincided, abused grimy escapades

chained, a gyrating errant

curio and ganders eviscerated

community attacked. ‘Gainst eggshell,

creosote anthrax gelled except

catholic applicants; glimmers exercised

chartreuse animi; gustatory emplacement

cobbled a gush except conducive

artificial grim energy; circular

assonances garnered elsewhere

crassly adverse ‘gainst ejaculation

circa antiseptic goner except

cocksure alarm. ‘Gainst election,

chevre abused ‘gainst elementary

clam, anulling gnomically experienced

consonant accord gave, “Equally

censure everything, Gravy?

Everything combusts grackle enlisting

contortion affidavits; germ evinces.”

Condom arrested, garrisonned, “Everyone’s

crap, anything grits except

cascade: all grab.” Earthquake

iii.

(writing through Lecture on Nothing)

ctur I am h is nothin g to s e who wish to

nc but what sil t I go on t ive

d produc that nothing to s tis poetry

c aniz king it ke

c a gl ss of milk we n

ss into which at nything m y be pour

y or c  ur in this talk. I h g s somethin

cross Kans sting lmost too inter

cially for ing inter

t is it corn? Do s it matt ss nothing. Our poetry now is th

ht (sinc ss it) and thus n st: it is gone;

d it; but sinc and so lling poetry is oft

call light lies in not poss

ch mom nts what h it strug le; th

climax th kingly be

com down in a v of string or sunset, poss

continuity happ ns. Nothing more th

can b ring or m this in music is not differ  

cans ‘s willingness to

c  limitations of stru thought out fi ured out, m 

disciplin ha s sug ves tr

How could I b ll what stru s long? t forty minutes h

ch unit is divid a squ pting s you se

I can s nything. It m kes v

inc what I s ssing throw h the fourth p

unit which is th ond part. Now th ngth s the third part

cond unit. Now b ond part. Now th ngth s the third p

nc of this talk from ssing the h

cond large p

mbling discussion of nothin , of form and willing to ept its limit

ch s ar nd signifi kbirds rise from

licious b ompar girls’ finishin llowed m

c ar th ‘s youngest

coll has r signed,

into politics. L I also h ring emin

nt music laim th nough to se

craz ginnin third part lking bout structure. It must b

cl ar from th gin in to get nowh

crops up about it th sting? It is n’t. But one thin

c rtain. If on king somethin

which is to b makin thing wher

chniqu of handling m teri

t structur as ning nothin. r took  musi lking bout somethin

nd of cours o on talking for time.) Th

to compos a m lody using only thre

con r mat ling, ther

cam thing by not bein

ls char t ought to et us som

ctual qu utobiogr lly. I rem

child lovin all th r on I gr lly liked

octav of Grie

cam t puppy-dog love, for th

music: it mad ying the works of

rn music, I took lik a duc ny things went to

rn music fas single ton

rn music that it f ing f ted by it I d

cid it at first is diffi t is, putting the mind on it t

call s m king lone I b

ch arn ning; they

ctually pr ling for it: for inst e: th

c ad n is this: progress in
such a w ing fooled? Not th

ctual. How ving ressions th

ctually pr voiding did not ppe

cl an sl nt- g rde.” I us

ctualiz to go throu them.

iv.