[silence] Roaratorio Recordings

[Eric Phelps]

Josh,
   
  There is another section of "Roaratorio" on the Peter Greenaway film (part of the four composers series).  It's still out on video... 
   
  Every performance of Cage's works (recorded and unrecorded) are different.  The pieces that are built with indeterminacy in the score will ALWAYS be different from performance to performance (Theatre Piece, etc. - there's a whole section of James Pritchett's book about this very topic).  Since "Roaratorio" is so complex, you would have to do some seriously deep listening to distinguish between the two, but I don't think that is actually the point.
   
  To go a layer deeper, every listening of every recording (even the same one - which is now a "fixed" piece) is different... If you listen in the car, your home, with headphone, without, etcx.  In addition, we all change from day to day, and therefore the things that we heard one day we will miss another.  Our ears are actually "growing older" in a sense - and that changes everything.  I recently had this experience hearing the Folkways recordings of "indeterminacy" (with David Tudor).  I can anticipate most of those stories and know some by heart (just from sheer repeition of listening).  As one of the stories says about the Winter Music, "No matter what we do - it ends by being melodic." 
   
  The fact that there are even recordings of these pieces (with John's participation - despite the fact that he actually didn't like recordings and generally didn't listen to them) is more of a function of the markett place than of the compositions.  I mean, - let's face it - he had to make a living off of scores, books and recordings... and with 300 pieces, there was plenty to go around.  But that's one of the many inherent contradictions in Cage's life and work. 
   
  So, you can search the internet, the archives, the libraries and the record stores of the world for additional recordings of that piece.  But if you want to have a "Roaratorio" of your own - go to a bar with an Irish band, stand in the doorway and put one ear to the band, one ear to the sounds of the bar, one ear to the people talking and one ear to the street - THAT'S a "Roaratorio."  I think that John would agree with this ("My concerts show us that concerts are no longer necessary.").
   
  My 3 Cents,
  Eric 

       
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