Jean Post Class 2/14

I watched the YouTube video 4:33 John Cage. I didn’t really understand the point of the silent orchestra. It was interesting and different how the conductor stood up in front of the orchestra with his conducting stick and they all sat in silence not playing. Then the video would show a time and they would flip the page of the sheet music. The audience applauded when done but the orchestra did not do anything they just started at the conductor in silence for 4 mins and 33seconds. It was interesting how they talked about the tension and how all you heard was every cough. It was very extraordinary how the audience and orchestra were able to be silent for that long it’s rare we ever take moments of silence and it’s very rare to have so many people stay silent for so long. It’s interesting how they were able to call that music even though it was silence. It goes back to language being what we make of it and how we interpret it. Its own art form. Music is what we want it to be weather it’s a hip-hop song or a moment of silence with orchestra instruments in front of you and a conductor conducting. Even though there was no sound in people’s eyes it was still considered a performance and piece because of the situation it was put into.