In the Name of the Holocaust, a composition of John Cage is written for a piano and is originally music for ballet.
The composition is one of the first when Cage recovers the thread with this instrument. After the first Bacchanale he left the machined piano for what it was and devoted himself to the percussion. He returned to his rifle in 1942 and came with this small memorial work to the Holocaust, which was still in progress. The title refers to that Holocaust, but according to the site dedicated to Cage also to Holy Ghost, a work by James Joyce.
The atmosphere is the work between Bacchanale and The Perilous Night. During the 1942 and 1943, Cage discovered new possibilities on the piano prepared. Part 1 begins as a "normal" piano piece, intermittently interrupted by some kind of carillon-like sounds. The piano sounds are still dominant against the percussive elements. In part 2, which tends somewhat more to percussion, there is a passage that is only possible on a piano. The keys are displayed with the full length of the (left) arm, right-hand pedal pressed; The sound is only piano, but the attack has the effect of breaking wood.
The premiere took place in Chicago with Cage behind the piano; Choreography of Merce Cunningham with whom Cage worked a lot during those years. It was danced by Cunningham and Jean Erdman. Limited discography Externe link
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