Abstract

This paper is an attempt to construct a spatial acoustic theory on the manner of operations within John Cage's 1963 musical composition titled Variations IV . In constructing such a theory I introduce Barry Blesser and Linda-Ruth Salter's notion of aural architecture , reflect on a number of details and references in Cage's score, and apply the visualisation methodology of semiotician A. J. Greimas. I also examine Cage's realisation directives as a system of emergence, primarily through the work's notation and its inherent spatial proclivities. In applying the semiotic square visualisation technique of Greimas I further derive the deep-level concepts of site , scale , landscape , and architecture , and discuss their relevance to the manner in which an emergent aural architecture is constructed by the work. A final diagram maps the listener experience of Variations IV as one predicated on the merging between interior and exterior acoustic spaces through the fluctuating interrelation between local and distant sound events and the architectural form.

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