Zaj was an

experimental music Experimental music is a general label for any music or music genre that pushes existing boundaries and genre definitions. Experimental compositional practice is defined broadly by exploratory sensibilities radically opposed to, and questioning of, ...

and

performance art Performance art is an artwork or art exhibition created through actions executed by the artist or other participants. It may be witnessed live or through documentation, spontaneously developed or written, and is traditionally presented to a pu ...

group formed in 1959 in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

by composers and intermedia artists

Walter Marchetti Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...

and Juan Hidalgo with the support of the American composer

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 ...

. The group received major contributions by different artists from the Spanish avant-garde scene, notably from the writer and diplomat José Luis Castillejo and from the interdisciplinary artist

Esther Ferrer Esther Ferrer (born 1937 in San Sebastián, Spain) is a Spanish performance artist. Ferrer received Spain's National Award for Plastic Arts (1999), the Marie-Claire Prize for Contemporary Art in France, and the Velázquez Plastic Arts Prize. Hi ...

. During the 1960s, members of Zaj took part in different

Fluxus Fluxus was an international, interdisciplinary community of artists, composers, designers and poets during the 1960s and 1970s who engaged in experimental art performances which emphasized the artistic process over the finished product. Fluxus ...

events organised by

George Maciunas George Maciunas (; lt, Jurgis Mačiūnas; November 8, 1931 – May 9, 1978) was a Lithuanian American artist, born in Kaunas. A founding member and the central coordinator of Fluxus, an international community of artists, architects, composers ...

. With the help of John Cage and his agent

Mimi Johnson Mimi Johnson is a New York City-based arts administrator. Through her nonprofit organization Performing Artservices, Inc. (founded in 1972), Johnson assists, promotes, and presents artists working in the fields of contemporary music, theater, and d ...

, Zaj also toured in different cities in the United States in the late 1970s. The group was disbanded in 1993 by Walter Marchetti.

Sources

* Barber, Llorenç, ''Juan Hidalgo'', Ritmo. Vol. 566, 1986, pp. 112–13, * Charles, Daniel, Performance (art et esthétique), Encyclopedia Universalis, France * Hidalgo, Juan (w. John Cage, Morton Feldman, Leopoldo La Rosa, Walter Marchetti), Rumoriallarotonda, CD booklet (32 pages), ALGA MARGHEN, ITALY, ALGA 031CD, 1998 * La Motte-Haber, Helga de, ''Die Gruppe Zaj: Cage-Rezeption in romanischen Ländern'' (Grupo Zaj: Cage reception in Romance countries), Positionen: Beiträge zur Neuen Musik. no. 21, pp. 32–33. Nov 1994, * Leyva Sanjuan, Antonio, ''Zaj: A conversation with Juan Hidalgo'', Crónica. Vol. 3, no. 42, 1991, pp. 32–33, * Medina Álvarez, Ángel, ''Primeras oleadas de vanguardistas en el área de Madrid'' (The first waves of the avant-garde in the Madrid area), in López-Calo, José (ed.), Spain in Western Music, Madrid, Spain: Ministerio de Cultura, 1987. 403, 504 pp * Sarmiento, José Antonio, ''Críticas a un concierto Zaj'' (Reviews of a concert by Zaj), Cuenca, Spain: Ediciones + 491, 1991

External links

Archivio Conz - Jose Luis CastilejoArchivio Conz-Juan HilgadoArchivio Conz- Walter MarchettiSite of Juan HidalgoInterview with Walter Marchetti in Mute Magazine
and André Éric Létourneau - Website of the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

Interview with Esther Ferrer (in French)
in Esse Magazine Italian artist groups and collectives Musical groups established in 1959 Italian contemporary artists 1959 establishments in Italy {{Italy-band-stub

See also

Sources

External links