Birthyear Present

12 chanced readings of Cage’s dear authors one for each month of the year.

6 tossings will determine the action:

first tossing: author

  1. Henry David Thoreau
  2. Erik Satie
  3. Buckminster Fuller
  4. Marshall Mcluhan
  5. Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki
  6. Marcel Duchamp
  7. Matsuo Basho
  8. Meister Eckhart
  9. Morton Feldman
  10. James Joyce
  11. Gertrude Stein
  12. on Mushrooms (any author)

second tossing: day of the month

1-31 or 1-29 or 1-30

third tossing: time of day

  1. morning
  2. midday
  3. before lunch
  4. after lunch
  5. evening
  6. late night

fourth tossing: location

  1. closed interior
  2. open interior
  3. interior/exterior
  4. closed exterior
  5. open exterior
  6. high exterior

fifth tossing: duration

  1. 10‘
  2. 20‘
  3. 30‘
  4. 40‘
  5. 50‘
  6. 60'

sixth tossing: reading speed

  1. very slow
  2. slow
  3. normal
  4. varied
  5. fast
  6. very fast

 

All 12 readings were brought together through chance operations for a commission from Radio Leufu's program Sonidos Mutantes II. The resulting piece was entitled "Late Present" (Regalo Atrasado) and was broadcast on July 29, 2014.

Late Present

12th reading

Marcel Duchamp's letters
during a morning in May in an interior/exterior
for 40 minutes at fast speed. - Santiago, Chile.

11th reading

Giuliana Furci's Fungi Austral: Guia de campo de los hongos mas vistosos de Chile
at midday in May in an interior/exterior
for 60 minutes at varied speed. - Valdivia, Chile.



10th reading

Buckminster Fuller's Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth
during a morning in May in a high exterior
for 10 minutes at fast speed. - Valdivia, Chile.

9th reading

Marshall McLuhan's Understanding Media: The Extension of Man
at night in May in an open interior
for 30 minutes at fast speed. - Valdivia, Chile.



8th reading

Daisetz Suzuki's Manual of Zen Buddhism
before lunch in May in an open exterior
for 30 minutes at fast speed. - Valdivia, Chile.



7th reading

Matsuo Basho's Haikai
before lunch in May in an open interior
for 20 minutes at slow speed. - Valdivia, Chile.



6th reading

Meister Eckhart's Mystische Schriften 
during an evening in May in a closed interior
for 30 minutes at varied speed. - Valdivia, Chile.

5th reading

Gertrude Stein's Tender Buttons (Food chapter)
on the night of June 11th in an interior/exterior
for 20 minutes at varied speed. - Santiago, Chile.

* the original recording was meant to happen on May 9th but chance had it otherwise.

4th reading

James Joyce´s Finnegans Wake
in the morning of May 28th* in a closed exterior
for 60 minutes at fast speed. Santiago, Chile.

*the original recording was done on May 21st but chance had it that the SD card would disappear.
1 month and 1 week later I could record it after two tries.

3rd Reading

Erik Satie´s Sports et Divertissements
late night on March 14th in an open exterior
for 10 minutes at varied speed. Santiago, Chile.

2nd Reading

Morton Feldman´s Give my regards to Eigth Street
in the morning of February 24th in an open interior
for 60 minutes at slow speed. Santiago, Chile.

1st reading

Henry David Thoreau's Walden
in the evening of January 31st in a high exterior
for 30 minutes at normal speed.
Valparaíso, Chile.

photographs by Samuel Toro.