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John Cage - Inlets

In the following, I will first describe and tell about the work „Inlets“ by John Cage (1977) and report on my impressions while listening to the work. 

In the work „Inlets“ by John Cage (1977) the players use amplified shells of different sizes that have been filled with water, producing gurgling sounds, as sounds to create a song. The player also poured water from one shell into another to create different sounds. A further sound effect the players use is sound of fire. Here, the player burns pine to produce such a sound. In addition to that, players breathe circularly into the microphone for an extra sound. 

John Cage is known for his interest in „contingency“, which he defined as „improvisating using elements in which there is a discontinuity between cause and effect“. Furthermore, Cage’s aspiration and inspiration for his musical pathway was indetermination, which meant that everything and each sound is unplanned and happens spontaneously. The special aspect of producing sounds by pouring water into different sizes of shells and moving them is that the players do not have any control over the produced sounds and neither of the sounds can be pre-produced in the same way. 

The main impression I got from listening to „Inlets“ was at first very rare, uncommon, unknown, and strange. At the same time, I felt a certain amount of calmness. However, I have to admit that John Cage’s music pieces sound completely strange and different, but I guess that it derives from his interpretation of music and sounds. This music is not the usual kind of music from nowadays that everyone knows. The usual kind of music does not only contain sounds but consists of singers, rappers, and melodic playing of instruments. In 1961, John Cage states that “[die] Musik, mit der ich mich beschäftige, muss nicht unbedingt Musik genannt werden. In ihr gibt es nichts, woran man sich erinnern soll. Keine Themen, nur Aktivität von Ton und Stille“ (John Cage, 1961, Silence. Lectures and Writings. Additionally, Cage emphasizes that the quality of certain sounds and noises is crucial for music. 

An additional aspect is the simplicity of the music video. The three players are filmed while they produce the different sounds of breathing, fire, and water. The setting of the video is very simple and is not a cod at all. Furthermore, the clothing of the players and the filming of the video was kept very plain and modest. 
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