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John Cage and His 4'33"

John Cage's musical piece 4'33" consists of 4 minutes and 33 seconds of silence.

Did you know there is a musical piece written by John Cage called 4'33"? The title is not chosen by chance. The piece somewhat resembles Kazimir Malevich's provocation with his black square. In general, it consists of 4 minutes and 33 seconds of silence (it's worth noting that it's in 3 parts).

John Cage's story is quite interesting (he did a lot of things), but this piece is also very popular. You can see how it's "performed" here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTEFKFiXSx4

As a fun fact, this piece was one of the most popular in bars on jukeboxes, where you could order music for a coin. Usually, loud music played there, and to have a quiet conversation or, for example, to propose to your beloved, you could order this piece 🙂

John Cage and His 4'33" — illustration