About
John Cage
John Cage (1912-1992) is best known as a composer, but he was also a philosopher, a poet, a chess master, a visual artist, a diarist, a mycologist, and an enthusiastic macrobiotic cook.
Cage was influential from the start, his radical new ideas reaching creative individuals across generations and disciplines. His prepared piano of the 1940s gave rise to beautiful and enduring compositions, and his notoriously tacit 4'33" of 1952 -- a composition in which no sounds are intentionally made by the performer -- continues to spark imaginations around the world.
Cage worked at Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle where he was a teacher and accompanist for dancer Bonnie Bird. Seattle also become the home of his touring percussion ensemble, for which extensive repertoire was written.
He was also instrumental in the development of modern dance, mostly through his association with choreographer Merce Cunningham.
Interested in learning more about Cage? Check out the John Cage Diary written by Maggie Molloy of Seattle's KING FM.
Third Construction performed by So Percussion
Cage's second piece for prepared piano, Totem Ancestor, with dance performed by Merce Cunningham.
New River Watercolor Series 1, #3, 1988. Watercolor on paper.
Learn more about this piece here.
Melanie Voytovich, Producer
Melanie Voytovich is a contemporary percussionist, educator, and event producer in Seattle.
Productions by Voytovich combine her passion for contemporary art with community accessibility and education. Most recently, 21 percussionists took the field at Seward Park for a public performance of John Luther Adams' epic work Inuksuit and received
glowing reviews. More information on her past projects can be found here.
Dedicated to encouraging innovation and collaboration, she pioneered and serves as the Executive Director of the New Works for Percussion project. The project supports upcoming artists and composers through commissions and recording projects.
In the last few years, Voytovich has performed with groups such as So Percussion, Talujon, Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Seattle Modern
Orchestra, and the Universal Language Project. She has also performed at festivals such as the Seattle Symphony's Day of Music and the Lincoln Center Out of Doors Festival.
Voytovich is currently researching and exploring the relationship of contemporary percussion and dance, integrating the ideas of composers such as Henry Cowell, John Cage, and Lou Harrison with her own. She has recently worked with local dancers such as Brittani Karhoff and Alice Gosti.
Voytovich is a Doctoral Candidate at the University of Washington. She previously earned a Master of Music degree in Performance at SUNY Buffalo, and a Bachelor of Music degree in Music Education at The Hartt School. She currently holds the office
of President with the Washington State Percussive Arts Society.