ABSTRACT
John Cage and the Advocacy of Chance John Cage wrote his first piece for recorded medium in 1939. Imaginary Landscape No. 1 was conceived for turntables and test records and was produced long before magnetic tape composition was available to the composer. Cage recalled, “Imaginary Landscapes No.1 used records of constant or variable frequency. We had clutches on those machines that allowed us to produce slides. You didn’t shift from 331/3 to 45 rpm, for instance, but you could go gradually through the whole thing.”1 This work preceded Schaeffer’s musique concrète by nine years, again showing how prophetic Cage’s musical vision had been.
