Abstract
This chapter begins by recounting how theological commentators deride John Cage’s 4'33" as par exemplar of “postmodern” sensibilities that result in artistically and theologically vapid music. I attempt to rehabilitate theological interest in the piece by briefly retracing Cage’s Protestant biography, recounting the 1952 concert premiere of 4'33", and revisiting in particular the 1948 Vassar College symposium, “The Creative Arts in Contemporary Society,” where Cage delivered a lecture titled “Silent Prayer.” Cage’s lecture is the first public mention of the ideas that eventuate in 4'33". The conference and lecture provide a broader intellectual context for the formation of 4'33" and historical clues that foreground my theological reading of the piece. The gathering also stands out as a remarkable moment in American intellectual history, exemplary in thoughtfulness about literary, visual, and musical arts and religion in ways that hold promise for fostering dialogue today about unity and aesthetic convergence between theological claims and material culture.
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