Let me start off by saying that I respect both John Cage and Merce Cunningham and what they’re trying to do. Both artists are revolutionizing and redefining what music is and what dance is. Both artists go against the rules and conventions of their art forms. They redefine what music and dance can be.
I agree with Cage and his method of thinking. Cage’s theory is that music is just sounds and that sounds can be music. I agree with this because everything we hear has some sort of flow, rhythm, beat, and/or tempo. Cage’s infamous 4’33” shows that even silence can be music. Many people say that this does not make sense, but I think it makes perfect sense. For example, when you lie down and just lay on your bed, you are not doing “nothing,” you are lying down, which is something. Also, black is defined as the absence of color, but it is a color nonetheless. In the same way the absence of sound, or silence, is a sound itself. The music then becomes the sounds around you, rather than the sounds coming at you. The one thing I didn’t like about the performance was that it was inside. I think that it should have been in a busy place, like Times Square, or in a park. While I do appreciate the beauty of just listening to other people around me, I think that it would be more beautiful to be outdoors.
I can also partially agree with Cunningham on the theory that “music does not support the dance in any conventional way.” Dance is the movement of a body and I do not believe that people move simply for the sake of moving, which is what I feel Cunningham is trying to say. Movement, I believe, is not intrinsic. That being said, music does support dance because it creates a flow to which the body moves. However, I do believe that dance can be performed without music. Even if we can’t hear the music, I’m sure that the dancer has established some sort of flow in their mind to which they can move their body. If their is no music then it is up to the audience to find a rhythm and flow in the movements of the dancer. This allows for a much more varied experience between audience members because the lack of music leaves much more room for imagination.