Taciturn Loquacity
Semifinalist — Adobe Design Achievement Awards, 2012
I chose the John Cage: 4’33” ISTD brief for the same reasons that I wanted to pass it over. I have played music my whole life and am at a crossroads with it at the moment. My collection of instruments, meant to be making sound, are left silent and are a source of considerable guilt. I am keen to find music again, in one form or another, and I saw this brief as the perfect opportunity to initiate a new musical conversation.
I recorded a series of ambient noises which form the manipulatable items in an iPad app designed to celebrate the 100th birthday of John Cage. Biographical information about the composer supplements the application as well as a comprehensive gallery of associated media. The ‘treat’ at the end of the learning portion of the app is the 4'33" player that allows users to create their own version of this famous work. The sounds that I pre-recorded are mixable along at least three parameters, are then saved and when played, create a full song.
