Henry Cowell was an American composer who pretty much defined "avant-garde" in the first half of the 20th century. "Ongaku" (written toward the end of his career, in 1957) is, in my opinion, one of his more accessible pieces.
Here's a very brief video clip showing Cowell in 1923 playing something probably a little less accessible.
3 comments:
i'm no composer, but it needs more cow bell.
Those were the days when a classical music concert could be as riotous as a Jim Morrison Doors concert.
'Cowell later recalled of the incident, "The police came onto the stage and arrested 20 young fellows, the audience being in an absolute state of hysteria — and I was still playing!" '
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Cowell
More cowbell can only help.
When your music leads to riots, you're either cutting edge or too obvious in ripping people off.
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