Talk:As Slow as Possible

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Church

The old instrument built in the middle ages was installed in the dome of halberstadt, not in the burchardi church. The Burchardi church gets used for the performance because it isn't used as a church anymore so it was available for such a long lasting piece of music :)

Currently

Surely wrong is the following sentence: »Currently the organ is playing a two-note chord, E below middle C and E above middle C (E3-E4), which began on July 5, 2004 and will conclude on May 5, 2006«. I've been at todays (20060105) pipe change party. There have been three pipes instead of the two mentioned above: Additionally there has been a g sharp above middle C (g#4). Today three further pipes have been added. And the change was today, not in Summer 2006 :) .

Sorry, I didn't edit the page by myself because my english is very poor :)

But why?!

There is nothing here about why this remarkable performance is being undertaken. That, to me, is of crucial interest. But I don't really know, so maybe someone else could elaborate? Thanks!

Why not? Does it need a reason?

I think one reason suggested was to connect between past, present and future. --njh 08:35, 23 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

No, it doesn't need a reason, but there is one: something about celebrating things that take a long time -- too long for us to experience in a lifetime -- in a world where everything is about going faster. Or something. Has anyone read what Cage wrote about this? I did a couple of years ago in some journal, but I can't remember where...

Title

According to [1], the proper title is ASLSP, and it stands for "As SLow(ly) and Soft(ly) as Possible". Does anybody know if this source is reputable? I have only seen two or three references to "ASAP" and none of them have been primary or secondary sources. All of the piano recordings I have seen simply call it "ASLSP" and the only organ recording I know of calls it "Organ²/ASLSP". I have found no recordings calling it "As Slow as Possible". --W0lfie 16:21, 17 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

That source,johncage.info is extremely reliable and a wonderful reference for Cage's music. The piece that's being performed is not ASLSP, which was written in 1985 for a piano competition. That score was for organ or piano, but Cage adapted the idea two years later into an organ piece, Organ²/ASLSP, which is in three staves.

A bit of vitriol

I removed this:

It is not expected that any similar exercise in artistic auto-masturbation will ever again take place, as the reaction of any normal person is to be sickened by the sheer egotistical pointlessness of such a "performance". As TISM once truly observed, "It's novel, it's unique, it's shithouse". Nor is it expected that the piece will continue to completion, as those involved (and the owners of the venue) must surely come to their senses some time in the remaining 600-odd years.

Since, while criticism should be incorporated in the article, this is probably not the way to do it... NPOV requires a bit more nuance. Oh, and what makes "auto-masturbation" different from the regular act? 82.92.119.11 13:09, 30 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

According to Masturbation, the word "can refer to excitation either by oneself or by another". Presumably, the former is "auto-masturbation", and the latter might be "allo-masturbation". — FJG 17:29, 21 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Wildly off-topic, of course, but I think "excitation by another" usually applies only for mutual masturbation, or when the verb "masturbate" is used transitively ("he masturbated her"), which is also rather uncommon. "Masturbation" proper almost always refers to an act performed on oneself, though I can see how "auto-masturbation" might not be a total pleonasm. Still, as a matter of style, it should probably be avoided unless the precision is obviously necessary, which in this case it's probably not... 82.92.119.11 18:32, 23 May 2006 (UTC)[reply]

A wise edit, though it was some nicely written (and not entirely inaccurate) vitriol. I personally would have done it more along the lines of "Smartasses." --Ghost of John Cage --Lode Runner (talk) 09:23, 7 December 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Heh

So does this qualify for {{currentevent}}, since we're describing exactly which notes are currently in effect? Haha, this is great. --Interiot 14:14, 13 August 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Of course. I've added the template. —Nightstallion (?) 15:50, 15 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I especially like "Information may change rapidly as the event progresses."... ;) —Nightstallion (?) 15:55, 15 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I made a specialised template, just for fun. I think this would be more appropriate: User:Inkington/current(ish) ;-) ~Inkiиgton 18:31, 15 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I'll likely be reverted, but I've added it to the article. ;) —Nightstallion (?) 12:07, 21 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Excellent work! Grand master ka 02:47, 27 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Ha! I had previously removed the current tag (I think they're way overused). The new tag is hilarious. Nice work. --Alcuin 01:15, 2 October 2006 (UTC)[reply]

i like it very much! W guice 23:03, 22 October 2006 (UTC)[reply]

That's great! just appropriate enough that I don't think it will get reverted. W0lfie 19:32, 20 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Current Events

Allow me to express my disapproval of the funny current events box at the top. I agree that it's funny, but I don't think it should be here. This is an encyclopedia, and jokes don't belong in the main namespace. Our other funny articles (Flying Spaghetti Monster, Exploding Whale, etc.) all manage to keep it professional, which at the end of the day actually makes it more ironic, at least to me—what other encyclopedia covers this kind of great stuff and yet does it seriously? --Spangineer^ws (háblame) 04:37, 5 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, I agree. I will remove it. --KFP (talk | contribs) 23:47, 18 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]
- I don't agree, actually. It seems serious enough until you examine it a bit more closely, and so it adds in a way that makes it quite unique... But I certainly won't revert something like this. Still, I'd prefer to have the tag in there. —Nightstallion (?) 23:54, 29 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Correction

I think the current chord/sonority description is incorrect. Checking out the ASLSP website: [2] and this reference from The Times: [3], it looks like the A3-C4-F#4 chord is still going, and will continue until July 5th 2012.

The chord that finished on May 5th 2006 was a previous E3-E4 octave which began on 5th July 2004.

I'll amend. Feel free to revert if I've got it wrong. 132.185.240.120 12:07, 11 January 2007 (UTC) Biff in Cardiff[reply]

Quick question

Is someone actually sitting at the organ and playing this, or is the organ automatic, like a player piano? James Callahan 16:48, 6 February 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Going by one news article that mentions "keys being held down by weights", I'm guessing that someone manually adjusts those weights each day the chord changes. And I'm guessing that the organ runs on its own, without any further human interaction, until the next chord change. Could someone confirm and work this detail into the article? --68.0.120.35 18:58, 13 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

contradiction

The article currently mentions: "There are eight pieces, any one of which must be omitted ... Organ2/ASLSP does not allow for an omission of one of the pieces ..."

This seems to be contradictory.

Also, the article says that "Organ²/ASLSP (As SLow aS Possible) is a musical piece" and later says that it has 8 pieces.

Which is it? I'm guessing the proper music theory term would be to say "Organ²/ASLSP has 8 sections".

--68.0.120.35 18:58, 13 April 2007 (UTC)[reply]

???

Has anyone noticed the title of this page? Talk:As Slow As Possible as in Talk as slow as possible? :-) -- Jac_roe 17:17, 20 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

I actually laughed out loud. Hyacinth (talk) 03:27, 21 January 2008 (UTC)[reply]

confusing statement

What is meant by "This leads to a curve from 1361 over 2000 to 2639"? --Shanedidona (talk) 04:36, 4 March 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Power source

What is the power source that keeps the sound going? I assume it's electricity. Will electricity keep the instrument playing without break for 600 more years or is there a backup power source? Badagnani (talk) 09:29, 3 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

Removed section

I took out this section, because it seems to be entirely based on an image which doesn't exist anymore. I think the long Cage quote is from a score, but it really needs to be verified. Anyone want to figure out where that came from? :

Organ2/ASLSP contains profoundly different musical material than its predecessor (pictured above). The performance instructions vary slightly, as well.

ASLSP Performance Note:

The title is an abbreviation of "as slow as possible." It also refers to "Soft morning city! Lsp!" the first exclamations in the last paragraph of Finnegans Wake (James Joyce).

There are eight pieces, any one of which must be omitted and any one of which must be repeated. The repetition may be placed anywhere (even before its appearance in the suite) but otherwise the order of the pieces as written shall be maintained.

Neither tempo nor dynamics have been notated. Time proportions are given (just as maps give proportional distances). Accidentals apply only to those pitches they directly precede.

Each hand plays its own part and is not to be assisted by the other. A diamond-shaped note indicates a note to be depressed without sounding. All the notes have stems. The stem gives the point in time of the single note, interval or aggregate. A closed notehead tied to an open notehead indicates the end of a sustained sound. Sustained sounds are also sometimes notated with straight line-extensions.

In a performance a correspondence between space and time should be realized so that the music "sounds" as it "looks". —-- John Cage

The piece was commissioned by The Friends of the Maryland Summer Institute for the Creative and Performing Arts as a contemporary requirement for a piano competition. Cage employed an open format mainly to insure that no two performances would be the same, providing the judges a break from the monotony of most competitions.

Organ2/ASLSP does not allow for an omission of one of the pieces, but it does require one repetition.

The removed section ends here. -Gohst (talk) 01:18, 6 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

ok honestly

exactly why are they doing this insane project?--Jakezing (talk) 04:40, 18 July 2008 (UTC)[reply]

As an artistic statement against the unnatural acceleration and fleetingness of life in today's Western culture. However, this talk page is reserved for discussion on how to improve the article, not for general talk about the article's subject matter. user:Everyme 17:26, 6 September 2008 (UTC)[reply]

How can this be carried out?

How can this be carried out? How can they ensure there are instructions to follow for 639 years? As of today, 639 years ago was in 1369. That was a time people were still making crusades all over Europe and killing each other if they interpreted the Bible in the wrong way. We hardly even know anyone from that period, except for the most prominent political and religious figures. Objects and documents from that period are considered invaluable historical remains, akin to sacred relics. Of course, society has grown better at recording history very drastically, but still, 639 years is a bloody long time. How can we make sure people to come even understand whatever instructions we leave them? For all we know, even the languages we now speak might die out by then. JIP | Talk 19:29, 12 October 2008 (UTC)[reply]

You got any libraries that old? How do they run? A strict set of rules that the person following has to follow in order to maintain the place. In fact, a quick look at Popes will show you that idea hasn't died out. In fact, picking one at random - Pope Cornelius - shows he was pope in the year 253. There have been lots of tasks undertaken by man which have lasted more than the lifetime of any one person. The Crazy Horse Memorial was started in '48 and the original artist died 34 years later. The face wasn't even completed until 16 years after that. It's wrong to assume a piece of music is a trivial matter. Just because its the worlds longest, or worlds biggest, doesn't mean it doesn't exist or won't be complete. Why build the world's largest skateboard? Or the Biggest ball of twine? Because these things can be done. It's human nature. Don't dismiss it. -Gohst (talk) 20:51, 12 October 2008 (UTC)[reply]