Water Walking and Bicycle Blowing (part 1)

Andre, , , ,

Most of you are probably already familiar with the following videos:

(The remainder of Zappa’s performance can be found here.) These videos have made the rounds numerous times over the years, but I don’t know if anyone’s ever looked into any possible connections between Cage and Zappa. To me, these two performances and their respective contexts are too similar to be coincidental. I think it’s very likely that Zappa saw Cage’s appearance on television and modeled his own performance on it. Even if there isn’t such a direct connection between the two videos, I think it’s more than likely that Zappa at least had some of Cage’s theory in mind.

I think there’s a lot to say here, so I’ll limit my discussion here to a little background info on the two videos. I’ll follow up in a second post with a brief analysis of Zappa’s discourse regarding Cage.

The first video shows John Cage in his February 24, 1960 appearance on the CBS game show I’ve Got a Secret. Typically, the show features contestants with unusual, amazing, embarrassing, or otherwise humorous secret. A panel tries to guess their secret using only yes/no questions. The host, Garry Moore, considered Cage’s secret–

I’m going to perform one of my musical compositions … The ‘instruments’ I will use are: a water pitcher, an iron pipe, a goose call, a bottle of wine, an electric mixer, a whistle, a sprinkling can, ice cubes, 2 cymbals, a mechanical fish, a quail call, a rubber duck, a tape recorder, a vase of roses, a seltzer siphon, 5 radios, a bathtub, and a grand piano.

–to be intriguing enough to forgo the game in hopes of allowing time for the entire piece to be performed (with the further hope of a Q&A afterwards).

water walk 1

Floorplan for Cage’s Water Walk [1]

The piece Cage performed, Water Walk, was an adaption of his earlier piece Water Music (1952) which is generally thought of as the first of Cage’s so-called “theater pieces.” Cage originally adapted the piece for a performance on a different game show, the Italian program Lascia o Raddoppia (loosely translated: “double or nothing”) in January of 1959.

cage_Buongiorno

John Cage on Lascia o Raddoppia with host Mike Buongiorno

On Lascia o Raddoppia, contestants answered questions on a topic of their choice. If they were successful, they were invited back the following week to answer harder questions for progressively larger winnings. A contestant who made it through all five weeks stood to win five million lire (approximately eight thousand dollars). Cage, an accomplished mycologist, answered questions about mushrooms with the aid of an interpreter. Cage made it through all five weeks and bought a new piano with his winnings upon returning home. More significantly, Cage was also invited to perform one of his compositions each week of show. Water Walk adapted the earlier Water Music to be more appropriate to the televised medium.

water walk 2

Detail of the score for Water Walk [2]

Compared to Water Music, Water Walk is much simpler. Cage’s specifications for the timing of various events are much less specific. More significantly, however, Cage seems to have introduced a greater degree of humor to the second piece, pandering to the lighthearted nature of television and its audiences. I think the added humor was something that would surely have appealed to Zappa.

(The only other performance of Water Walk by Cage was done on The Henry Morgan Show in June of 1959.)

In the other video, we see Zappa performing on The Steve Allen Show three years later. Zappa’s piece, a “concerto for two bicycles, a pre-recorded tape and the musicians in the back” is much more improvised. As Zappa points out in the pre-performance interview, he hadn’t been playing the bike very long.

Jerry Hopkins, the show’s talent coordinator recalls how Zappa landed the gig:

The rules for my job were simple. Get someone who was genuinely eccentric or who did something at least a little strange or out-of-the-ordinary, but never make fun of them—the idea was to have fun with them. And, no fakes, no frauds, no bogus acts looking for exposure and willing to do anything to get it, no put-ons or send-ups, no cons. Because, Steve assured me, they never, ever worked, and they embarrassed everyone.

Only once did I ignore his advice and that was when I got a call from a young man who identified himself as Frank Zappa. He said he wanted to teach Steve how to “blow bicycle.” “Blow bicycle,” I repeated.

“Yeah, you know, like, the bicycle is a musical instrument.”

(You can read the rest of Hopkins’ account here.)

Zappa’s performance even got a write up in a local Cucamonga newspaper:

“Ontario Composer, Steve Allen To Play Wacky Duet”

Frank Zappa, 22, Ontario resident and composer of music, serious and otherwise, will be seen on television tomorrow night playing a bicycle concerto for two with Steve Allen. The show is at 11 p.m., Channel 5. “It’s very funny,” said Zappa. “You play a bicycle by plucking the spokes and blowing through the handle bars.” Other methods of producing “cyclophony” is to stroke the spokes with the bow of a bass fiddle, twirl the pedals and let air out of the tires. The Zappa-Allen concerto will be abetted by a man in the control room fooling around with a tape recorder and by a jazz group which will supply toneless background noise. Zappa studied music and art at Chaffey College. He wrote the score for “The World’s Greatest Sinner,” a low-budget tale about a sacrilegious imposter who repents. “Sinner” had its premiere at Vista-Continental Theater, Hollywood, and opened Wednesday at the Ken Theater, San Diego. Zappa writes musical commercials for TV and radio. They are recorded at Pal Studio, Cucamonga. [3]

These videos both provide neat examples of how the frequently-opposed worlds of art and pop occasionally intersect. A lot of the responsibility for these meetings can be placed on television. I haven’t quite worked this out completely yet, but it seems that for Zappa, the added visual dimension of televised performance goes hand in hand with what he thought about Cage.

In both of these videos, what interests me is the awkward mix of polite respect and anxious laughter on the parts of the hosts and the audiences of each show. I think that these two videos give us an intimate glance a very specific moment in the history of avant-garde music. Audiences (and television programmers) were still receptive to experimental ideas, which themselves hadn’t yet been relegated to exclusive academic circles.

From my perspective, nearly fifty years later, it’s remarkable how adventurous television programming was in the middle of the twentieth century. It’s easy to complain about the lack of this sort of programming nowadays, but I think these examples might give us a better understanding of the current situation.

References:
[1] Taken from William Fetterman, John Cage’s Theatre Pieces: Notations and Performances (Amsterdam: Harwood Academic Publishers, 1996), 33.
[2] Ibid., 35.
[3] As of yet, I have not been able to find an accurate citation for this article. Based on the details it came from a Cucamonga, CA newspaper and can be dated to March 13, 1963. A transcription of the text can be found here.
Water Walking and Bicycle Blowing (part 1)

84,938 thoughts on “Water Walking and Bicycle Blowing (part 1)”

  2. extra firm body briefer by rago

    wedding dresses color accentswholesale square dance costumes for sale group buy sexy latin dance dress square dancing clotheswomens blazers outerwearimage is loading new ladies christmas love flakes reindeer kissing xmas

  3. komoda maui s textiln铆 v媒pln铆 z谩suvek m暖啪e b媒t v b铆l茅 i p艡铆rodn铆

    d谩msk茅 plavky jednod铆ln茅 monokiny v铆cebarevn茅ballerines tbs opiace noir femme outletgrosses soldes fugitive ilana sandale sandale chaussures femmefemme gris anthracite a paillettes zara escarpins

  5. torebka kazar listonoszka

    new all star silver dance shoe by gfranco shoesaetrends 2018 new summer beach hat straw sun hats for men women jazz capcomprar tutu con maillot para ni帽as blancovintage and second hand shops og venice italy travel guide

  8. pè°©nske hodinky fossil chronograph

    cheap michael kors oyster mott lizard embossed leather crossbody for sale onlinechanel flat bag. brand new in packaging. comes with dust 60 depopauthentic vintage gucci gg supreme drawstring shoulder sling baglyst michael kors jet set travel leopard ha…

  10. casco eglemtek a 35

    rasteira vizzano recorte nude compre agorapreto chuteiras futebolbolsa hollister bolsa tommy hilfiger no mercadocompras online menina crian莽as arco n贸 sapatos de dan莽a das mulheres latino sapatos de dan莽a

  11. 卸械薪褋泻懈械 泻芯卸邪薪褘械 褋褍屑泻懈 泻褍锌懈褌褜 泻芯卸邪薪褍褞 褋褍屑泻褍 胁 褍泻褉邪懈薪械

    zalaegerszeg ruh谩zati 眉zlet baby land bababoltaliexpress olcs贸 nike r枚vidnadr谩g f茅rfi l4xl n艖i m2xl a porcel谩n outlet onlineretro jeans n艖i over谩ladidas gyerek p贸l贸 10 12 茅ves 500 ft k茅p

  12. basket new balance bleu homme

    gdpr 蟹邪褖懈褌邪 薪邪 谢懈褔薪懈 写邪薪薪懈 屑懈谐 褌褍褌褉邪泻邪薪 褋谢懈胁芯 锌芯谢械胁褗谢薪械薪 褕邪谢 3 薪懈褋泻懈 锌褉芯屑芯 褑械薪懈 蟹邪 芯薪谢邪泄薪 锌芯褉褗褔泻懈. 芯薪谢邪泄薪 屑邪谐邪蟹懈薪 蟹邪褌褉械泻懈薪谐 芯褌 薪褟泻芯谢泻芯 写薪懈 芯斜谢械泻谢芯 褕邪锌泻邪 褋 泻芯蟹懈褉泻邪 trek 700 forclaz 褕邪锌泻懈褌褉械泻懈薪谐 芯褌 薪褟泻芯谢泻芯 写薪懈 褌褉械泻懈薪谐 谐邪蟹芯胁邪 斜褍褌懈谢泻邪 薪邪 胁懈薪褌 pg 100 primus…

  14. nike huarache

    Thank you for all your valuable work on this site. Ellie enjoys getting into investigation and it is easy to understand why. Most of us notice all of the powerful means you present efficient guides via this blog and even inspire participation from the…

  17. 蟽伪魏委未喂伪 蟿蟽维谓蟿蔚蟼 蟿蟽维谓蟿蔚蟼 蟺位维蟿畏蟼 蟿蟽伪谓蟿伪 蟺位伪蟿畏蟼 small merrell

    卸械薪褋泻懈械 泻芯褕械谢褜泻懈 泻谢邪褌褔懈 泻褍锌懈褌褜 泻芯褕械谢械泻 泻谢邪褌褔 胁 褉芯褋褋懈懈 薪械写芯褉芯谐芯褋褍屑泻邪 斜褉械蟹械薪褌芯胁邪褟 褋褍屑泻懈 胁 褋械屑械械 屑邪褉泻械褌褋锌芯褉褌懈胁薪邪褟 褋褍屑泻邪 褔械褉械蟹 锌谢械褔芯 sport303246 胁 泻邪褌械谐芯褉懈懈 褋锌芯褉褌懈胁薪褘械泻褍锌懈褌褜 褔械屑芯写邪薪 bonro smile 褋褉械写薪懈泄 卸械谢褌褘泄 薪械写芯褉芯谐芯

  18. michael jordan shoes

    I really wanted to write a simple remark in order to express gratitude to you for these fabulous pointers you are writing at this site. My considerable internet lookup has finally been recognized with excellent concept to share with my pals. I ‘d supp…

  21. kd 9 aunt pearl request

    nike air huarache 4 lv men and women 36 46 38.00refinement nike fi flex golf shoes black nike golf shoesthe 10 nike zoom fly off white aj4588 001 black white cone black nike zoom fly off white free articlewomens 4ml lre nike kobe 9 elite high top girls…

  27. 賮爻丕 賷賳 禺胤賵亘丞 亘丕賱賱賵賳 丕賱兀禺囟乇 賱毓乇賵爻 乇亘賷毓 2019

    爻丕毓丕 乇噩丕賱賷丞 賲丕乇賰丞 亘賵賱賷爻 卮賳胤 亘乇丕丿丕 丕賱噩丿賷丿丞 爻丕毓丕 賰丕爻賷賵 賯賱賷丿 卮賳胤賰賷賮 兀 毓丕賲賱 賲毓 夭賵噩賷 賮賷 卮賴乇 丕賱毓爻賱 .. 賳氐丕卅丨 賴丕賲丞 噩丿丕賸 毓賱賷賰賽 丕 亘丕毓賴丕 賮賷賲丕乇賰丞 卮丕賳賷賱 2019噩賳胤賴 乇賷丕囟賷賴 Adidas

  28. teplè°©ky oyster holdings

    nowy jesie艅 zima buty m臋skie step bordeaux buty trampki meskie 553 53 z艂sneakersy niskie black white metallic silverzamszowe sztyblety damskie zamszowe sztyblety damskiep贸艂buty maria偶 1473 ceny i opinie

  29. dick the birthday boy t shirt clothing

    mr and mrs right back tee shirt st valentinthis is a product shot of lauren by ralph lauren lrl ls setplus size maxi dresses for full figured fashion conscious ladies looking for flattering summer fashionsmens black double breasted peacoat reiss sherlo…

  32. 31 arkiv empire sko

    mens sandals beige multi brown espadrilles flip flops flip flop platform wedge heel thongs mule colour jwf flipl.k. bennett flats up to 90 off at tradesyhot sale riviana leather wedge sandalsdolce gabbana tile print embellished platform sandal in blue…

  33. w air max 1 prm leopard pack mens sneakers sale

    锌谢邪褌褜械 cocoon 卸屑懈锌谢邪褌褜褟 卸械薪褋泻懈械 芯锌褌芯屑 泻褍锌懈褌褜 褋芯 褋泻谢邪写邪 胁 芯写械褋褋械 7 泻屑锌懈卸邪屑邪 写谢褟 屑邪谢褜褔懈泻邪 baykar 斜邪泄泻邪褉 褉芯褋褌 芯褌 122褋屑. 写芯锌芯写褍褕泻懈 褋 褎芯褌芯 锌芯写褍褕泻邪 褋芯胁邪

  35. nike fcb y nk brt stad ss hm

    prada linea rossa slne膷n茅 okuliare pradabr媒le ray ban d谩msk茅 slune膷n铆 br媒le ray ban rb 4227 710gucci damske slne膷n茅 okuliarekomun谩lne vo木by 2018 o kreslo prim谩tora maj煤 v partiz谩nskom z谩ujem

  37. d谩mske jesenn茅 bundy tmavomodr谩 adidas bunda slim jacket winter oble膷enie

    銈儑銈ｃ儉銈?銉堛儸銉笺儕銉?銈广偊銈с儍銉?銉°兂銈?銉儑銈ｃ兗銈?adidas buyee妤藉ぉ甯傚牬 銉愩兗銉堛儷 burtle 闀疯銉濄儹銈枫儯銉?銈广儓銉儍銉併儖銉冦儓 浣滄キ鏈?/a>榛?璧ゃ亗銈?闈?涓€鏈笅椐?銈炽偣銉椼儸銈枫儳銉冦儣銇便倠銇点亣鑷虎杌?绉嬪啲銉曘偂銉冦偡銉с兂 銇俱仌銇裤倱

  41. czcity flower pendant necklaces for women womens jewelry set for clip stud earrings necklace 18k champaign gold plated

    pijama de terciopelo hello de algodè´¸n orgè°©nico kiabiconjunto de pantalones y chaqueta corta estilo militarchaqueta manchester city 2017 2018 naranja cheap good qualitycè°©rdigan en punto grueso de ochos tejido a mano premium

  42. 绉嬪啲鐗?銈︺兗銉偝銉笺儓銉儑銈ｃ兗銈?闊撳浗棰?鏆栥亱銇?銉兂銈颁笀銉┿偡銉ｃ偝銉笺儓 銈嗐仯銇熴倞 銉儑銈ｃ兗銈广偝銉笺儓 涓婂搧 楂樼礆鎰?锛掕壊鍏?銇娿伈銇曘伨銉栥儵銉炽偙銉冦儓

    richa brooklyn ladies leather glove brown2017 fashion women flat shoes rhinestone slides crystal embellished sandals sexy black beach shoes woman slippers real photoshop roper western shoes womens mule leather brown free shipping today overstocklow hee…

  44. hartman florence bistro set

    buty do biegania m臋skie asics gt 1000 3nowe sk贸rzane buty w kolorze pudrowym do 艣lubu 艂贸d藕 g贸rnabuty adidas altasport k ftwwht sznurowane p贸艂butykotyl 5901 z艂ote taneczne sanda艂ki 艣lubne fotografia

  46. trying for how i wore a zara trench coat

    reception be formal glam. the guys are wearing black velvet tuxedo jacketsavailable in black rose gold damask sequin dress mock neck sleeveless 100 polyesterca midnight wash carpenter in blue mens christian audigier jeans online shoplito big girls red…

  48. cinturino acciaio black

    mlb new york yankee baby gift set 5 piece setsweatshirt adidas real madrid juniorralph lauren polo grey fleece basketball bear full zip hoodie jacket newadidas jacket vintage retro tracksuit top oldschool 80s track 38 40 large mens

  49. puma damskie 2016 online

    buty sportowe damskie zx flux j by9833 adidas ceny i opiniesanda艂ki profilaktyczne bartek babyd谩mske ko啪en茅 zimn茅 top谩nky s ov膷ou vlnou biele ako v perinkebe啪eck茅 nohavice a elastick茅 nohavice p谩nske

  50. 丕丨匕賷丞 毓乇賵爻 2018 卮賰賷賱丞 賲賲賷夭丞 賵兀賳賷賯丞 賳賯丿賲賴丕 賱賰賲

    os 贸culos mais bonitos do mundolugares para comprar 贸culos escuro em san diegorayban super promo莽茫o de 贸culos ray ban modelo 8013 sol 贸culos no贸culos ray ban justin rb4165 55 preto fosco

Comments are closed.