{"id":1048,"date":"2019-02-25T15:33:52","date_gmt":"2019-02-25T19:33:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/alcguitar.com\/blog\/?p=1048"},"modified":"2019-02-25T15:34:37","modified_gmt":"2019-02-25T19:34:37","slug":"review-john-cage-guitar-the-arts-fuse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alcguitar.com\/blog\/review-john-cage-guitar-the-arts-fuse\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: John. Cage. Guitar. \u2013\u00a0THE ARTS FUSE"},"content":{"rendered":"

John Cage on guitar? Why not? Though the American maverick never wrote explicitly for the \"\"instrument, some of his early piano music was adaptable enough for guitarist Aaron Larget-Caplan to arrange for his instrument. The results, out now\u00a0John Cage: Guitar<\/em>, are often enticing and plenty appealing.<\/p>\n

Larget-Caplan\u2019s program consists of seven Cage pieces, all of which originated in the 1930s and \u201840s, a couple of which are remarkably prescient. The opener,\u00a0A Room<\/em>, for instance, anticipates the Minimalist procedures of a later generation or two. And the prepared-guitar closer,\u00a0Bacchanale<\/em>, sounds a couple decades younger than it is, almost like a kind of high-brow anticipation of Jimi Hendrix.<\/p>\n

In between come Cage\u2019s\u00a0Three Easy Pieces<\/em>, which sound like just that: a set of short, contrapuntal exercises that exude not a little bit of charm, especially the central \u201cDuo.\u201d\u00a0Chess Pieces\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0Dream<\/em>\u00a0are more substantial. The former is adapted from a composition that appears in a 1944 Cage painting while the latter, a ruminative essay, was originally conceived as a dance piece.\u00a0In a Landscape<\/em>\u00a0is another affecting, resonant meditation.<\/p>\n

Then there are\u00a0Six Pieces<\/em>, a set of radiant miniatures for violin and guitar, in which Larget-Caplan\u2019s joined by violinist Sharon Leventhal. Cage\u2019s writing here is highly specific \u2013 the violin part, for instance, indicates which string each note is supposed to be played on \u2013 but the music itself is anything but restrained, ranging from the quiet ecstasy of \u201cMelody 1\u201d to the jaunty syncopations of \u201cMelody 3\u201d and the subdued glow of \u201cMelody 6.\u201d<\/p>\n

Larget-Caplan\u2019s performances are excellent.<\/strong> Technically, he\u2019s got everything under control, no matter how involved the arrangements get. What\u2019s more, his playing brims with charisma and understanding: Cage can be a tough composer to really bring to life. Larget-Caplan (and Leventhal, in\u00a0Six Pieces<\/em>) manage the feat impressively.<\/p>\n

Classical Music CD Reviews: ROCO’s “Visions Take Flight,” Nordic Affect\u2019s “He(a)r,” and “John Cage: Guitar.”<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n