Interludes

Interludes is part of an ongoing commission project by the American pianist and composer Amy Williams. As part of John Cage’s groundbreaking Sonatas and Interludes, Williams commissions composers to write new, short interludes using the same piano preparations. For this Stuttgart performance, new works were written by Ui-Kyung Lee, Brandon Lincoln Snyder, Sophie Pope, and Joseph Michaels. These new interludes were interspersed during a performance of Cage’s work to illustrate the enduring and profound influence this masterpiece has had for over 70 years. Williams performs using a set of preparations approved by John Cage himself. These preparations were given to her by pianist Bennett Lerner, who worked closely with Cage in New York in the 1970s. To date, Williams has performed this project throughout the United States. This performance in Stuttgart marked the first time the project has been presented in Europe.

Sonatas and Interludes by John Cage consists of 20 short pieces: 16 sonatas (in two- or three-movement forms) and 4 freely structured interludes. Dozens of objects (screws, bolts, erasers, pieces of rubber and plastic) are inserted into the piano’s strings to produce sounds reminiscent of percussion instruments (gongs, wooden blocks, cymbals). The unique prepared sounds—sometimes combined with unprepared sounds—create a breathtaking palette of timbres. The piece is an emotional journey through the eight constant emotions of ancient Hindu aesthetics: the “white” emotions (heroic, erotic, joyful, and wondrous) and the “black” emotions (fear, anger, disgust, and sorrow).