''Organ²/ASLSP'' (''As Slow as Possible'') is a musical piece by

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading fi ...

and the subject of the second-longest-lasting musical performance yet undertaken. Cage wrote it in 1987 for

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

, as an adaptation of his 1985 composition ''ASLSP'' for piano. A performance of the

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

version usually lasts 20 to 70 minutes.'World's longest concert' resumes
Steve Rosenberg,

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...

(2008-07-05). Accessed 2008-07-05. An organ in St. Burchardi church in

Halberstadt Halberstadt ( Eastphalian: ''Halverstidde'') is a town in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt, the capital of Harz district. Located north of the Harz mountain range, it is known for its old town center that was greatly destroyed by Allied bombi ...

in 2001 began a performance that is due to end in 2640. The next note will be played on February 5, 2024.

History

The Friends of the

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Summer Institute for the Creative and Performing Arts commissioned the piece for contemporary requirement of a piano competition. Cage used an open format to ensure no two performances would be the same, and give judges a break from the consistency of most compositions. The

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is eight pages.

Performances

Diane Luchese played ''Organ²/ASLSP'' from 8:45 am to 11:41 pm on February 5, 2009, at Towson University. This 14-hour-56-minute performance was the longest recorded individual performance until 2022.

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and Twitch channel 'AllRequest/ AllRequest_Live' performed an adapted version of ''ASLSP'' to a live audience for 24 hours, from 12:00am on February 4, 2022 to 12:00am on February 5, 2022.

Stephen Whittington Stephen Whittington (born 13 August 1953) is an Australian composer, pianist, teacher and writer of music. Biography Whittington was born in Adelaide, South Australia, in 1953. He studied music at the Elder Conservatorium of Music, where his ...

performed an 8-hour version of ''ASLSP'' on the Elder Hall organ for

John Cage Day John Cage Day was the name given to several events held during 2012, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of the composer John Cage. These events included John Cage Day at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, held on August 9, 2012, J ...

in 2012 at the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

. Organists Patrick Wedd, Adrian Foster, and Alex Ross gave a 12-hour team performance at Christ Church Cathedral,

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, in 2015. Daniel Cooper gave a 12-hour performance in Knox Church to mark the Southern Hemisphere's

winter solstice The winter solstice, also called the hibernal solstice, occurs when either of Earth's poles reaches its maximum tilt away from the Sun. This happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere ( Northern and Southern). For that hemisphere, the winte ...

in 2019. Christopher Anderson gave a 16-hour performance, currently the second slowest performance and longest complete performance on record, on March 8, 2022 at Perkins Chapel on the campus of

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = "The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , prov ...

Halberstadt performance

Background

Musicians and philosophers discussed Cage's instruction to play "as slow as possible" at a conference in 1997, because a properly maintained pipe organ could sound indefinitely. The John Cage Organ Foundation Halberstadt decided to play the piece for 639 years, to mark the time between the first documented permanent organ installation in

Halberstadt Cathedral The Halberstadt Cathedral or Church of St Stephen and St Sixtus (german: Dom zu Halberstadt) is a Gothic church in Halberstadt in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was the episcopal see of the Bishopric of Halberstadt, established by Emperor Charlemagne ...

, in 1361, and the proposed start date of 2000.First notes for 639-year composition

(2003-02-05). Accessed 2008-07-05. Until August 2021 the Foundation sold plaques commemorating the years through 2640 to fund the performance.

The instrument

An organ was built specifically for the performance. It is in the church's right transept, with the bellows in the left transept. Acrylic glass encases it to reduce the volume.

Performance

The Halberstadt performance started on September 5, 2001, with a rest lasting until February 5, 2003, when the first chord played. Sandbags depress the organ's pedals to maintain the notes. Two more organ pipes were added alongside the four already installed and the tone became more complex at 15:33 local time. The bellows provide a constant supply of air to keep the pipes playing. On July 5, 2012 two more organ pipes were taken out, and two were in the organ. The note changed on September 5, 2020. The performance is scheduled to end on September 5, 2640.

References

External links

Website of the Halberstadt event

Performance Today feature (

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

), September 2003 * Recordings of a nine-hour performance of ''ASLSP'' a
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Die Zeit ''Die Zeit'' (, "The Time") is a German national weekly newspaper published in Hamburg in Germany. The newspaper is generally considered to be among the German newspapers of record and is known for its long and extensive articles. History The ...

'', January 8, 2006
Website of the documentary film ''ASAP'' by Scott Smith

''The Washington Post''. November 21, 2011. {{Authority control 1987 compositions 27th century Compositions by John Cage Compositions for organ