In January 1966, 10 artists and 30 engineers embarked on a technological journey to accommodate dance acts with a synchronized lighting show, using photoelectric cells and the interruptions of light beams to create electric signals and musical noises.
John Cage created one of the most innovative electronic music performances – Variations VII. He and his engineers were using new and innovative techniques to create sound. Miking electronic appliances with contact mics and the use of sine wave generators were incorporated to create the piece and perform it live at the same time. John drew a big part of his inspiration from chants. These artists went to the extreme with the manipulation of sounds, almost to the point of noise. The process is very technical, and an art form in itself. Most people would perceive theses sounds as noise. He never limited himself to accept to the rules of composing music in the traditional manner. Variations VII didn’t use any magnetic tape. All sounds were in the air or produced by oscillators. As sounds were being heard in the performance, that was also the very live creation of that sound. It is really interesting to think about. Sounds were produced as they were heard, ending up as a form of chance music. John Cage derived his ideas from the I Ching book, by tossing sticks and coins to determine where sounds would be placed. Billy Kluber was someone who was experimenting in the research division trying to get computers to communicate with each other, and also helped perform Variations VII. He assisted in the building of the special platform in front of the control room where they set up tables with household appliances and other equipment. The juicers, blenders, radios, and fans used contact mics. They manipulated the sounds by using photoelectric cells. When a person would walk past a light and interrupt the light flow to the cell, the sound would change. These lights were place under the tables where all of the equipment was. The telephones that they acquired from BELL labs were wired lines with magnetic pickups that were connected to pick up sounds from real places in real time. Telephones were placed in a restaurant, a sanitation department, an apiary, and a few other places and the signal was sent to the building where the performance was. John Cage began encouraging the audience members to come stand close and watch the performance. David Tudor was another engineer/performer that had is own separate table with a series of gadgets that made oscillator sounds that were out of control.
The space they used for 9 evenings had a 6 second reverb echo, which provided an environment that made these electronic sounds smoother, given that the decay was so long. Moog designed antennaes that would interact with dancers using photoelectric cells.
Terry Riley was a composer, and he was interested in turtles and had an aquarium. They used the phone to record the motor that circulated the water in the tank. They also recorded sounds from a newspaper print plant. John Cage was the intellectual idea behind the composition and performance. He composed variables, and a basic outline of the piece. As a composer, he set his engineers up as composers because their movement would affect the photocells, and control sounds. Performers could also be seen as instruments. They made things so interesting, and were going above and beyond, using everyday sources were reframed, and warped into new sounds. This performance challenges our notion of what an instrument, a song, and a composer is. Cage’s role in relinquishing control: He was very open minded and left it up to the gear and the performer to add the special elements to the performance. He set up an environment and a setting, and used chance to create a live composition. A big part of this piece was the acceptance of sounds from the world. How was this performance beyond just a music performance? It was multimedia presentation of sound. There were audience members watching the performance.