A score-schema invented by the legendary American composer John Cage in 1967, Musicircus is a performance in which performers who are or are not musicians, amateurs, students or professionals, soloists or groups, are invited to play some music of their choice in a single space in a unique sequence orchestrated by the use of chance. Musicircus was presented at CN D in September 2019 as part of the Fabrique John Cage & Merce Cunningham, with the Festival d'Automne in Paris.
From New York to Liverpool, via Metz, Musicircus has been activated on many occasions throughout the world. At the CN D, on 28th September 2019, Musicircus was presented as part of La Fabrique John Cage & Merce Cunningham in partnership with the Festival d’Automne of Paris. Laura Kuhn, the director of the John Cage Trust, led two preparatory workshops for participants who were amateur non-musicians, to transmit the protocols of John Cage’s scores, in which the instruments are such objects as seashells, newspapers or radios. For the first time, this gigantic score was devoted entirely to John Cage’s repertory. From the atrium, to the staircase, experimental music invaded the building for six hours with over 120 musicians taking part.
“What we need is silence; but what silence needs is for me to continue talking.”
John Cage
