ABSTRACT
This chapter explores Cornelius Cardew's music of the 1960s, the period in which Cardew considered himself to be a bourgeois composer. It considers how the experience and exploration of Cage's music marked the starting point for a tentative move away from music simply as a product that is, an artefact produced by the composer for the delectation of an audience to the notion of music as a process and, crucially, Cardew's developing preoccupation with the role of the performer in bringing music to life. The chapter assesses the significance of the Cage influence, which aspects of Cage's music Cardew was most drawn to, the areas of conflict and departure between the two composers and, ultimately, asks whether Cardew was ever really a bourgeois composer. It draws to a close by returning to Cardew's notion of the bourgeois composer, and his self-imposed indictment. Tilbury asserts that in fact, Cardew's admiration for Cage had nothing to do with Cage's compositional techniques.
