What silence can teach you about sound | Dallas Taylor

Translator: Josep Maria Agustí Reviewer: Gracia Llorca

For many of us right now, our lives are quieter than normal.

Per molts de nosaltres, ara mateix, la vida és més silenciosa que de costum.

And quiet can be unnerving.

I el silenci pot ser inquietant.

It can make you feel lonely,

Pot fer que et sentis sol,

or just all too aware of the things you're missing out on.

o potser massa conscient de les coses que trobes a faltar.

I think about sound all the time.

Sempre penso en el so.

I'm a sound designer,

Sóc enginyer de so,

and I host the podcast "Twenty Thousand Hertz."

i presento el podcast "Vint mil hertzs".

It's all about the world's most recognizable and interesting sounds.

Tracta dels sons més reconeixibles i interessants del món.

But I think this is the perfect time to talk about silence.

Però crec que ara és el moment més adient per parlar del silenci.

Because what I've come to understand

Perquè he arribat a comprendre

is that there is no such thing as silence.

que el silenci no existeix.

And the person who opened my mind to this idea

I la persona que em va obrir els ulls a aquesta idea,

is one of the most influential composers in history.

és un dels compositors més influents de la història.

(Piano music)

(Música de piano)

John Cage has made an impact on artists in many genres,

John Cage ha influenciat profundament artistes de molts gèneres,

from avant-garde musicians, to modern dance, to pop music.

des de músics d'avantguarda a dansa moderna o música pop.

Right now, we're listening to his 1948 piece

Ara estem escoltant la seva composició de 1948

called "In a Landscape."

titulada "En un paisatge".

This version was recorded in 1994 by Stephen Drury.

Aquesta versió va ser gravada el 1994 per Stephen Drury.

(Piano music)

(Música de piano)

This piece is actually not very typical of John Cage's writing.

En realitat, aquesta peça no és típica de l'escriptura de John Cage.

He's more known for his innovations and avant-garde techniques.

És més conegut per les seves innovacions i tècniques d'avantguarda.

But despite his reputation,

Però malgrat la seva reputació,

no one was prepared for what he did in 1952,

Ningú estava preparat per al que va fer el 1952,

when he created the most daring piece of his career.

quan va crear la composició més agosarada de la seva carrera.

It was called "4'33'',"

Es titulava 4 minuts 33 segons

and it was a piece that some critics even refused to call "music,"

i alguns crítics fins i tot es van negar a dir-ne "música" d'aquella peça,

because for the entire duration of the piece,

perquè al llarg de la duració sencera de l'obra,

the performer plays

el músic no toca

nothing at all.

res en absolut.

Well, to be technical, the performer is actually playing rest.

Bé, per dir-ho tècnicament, en realitat el músic toca pauses.

But to the audience, it looks like nothing is happening.

Però, per al públic, sembla com si no passés res.

John Cage's "4'33''" was performed for the first time

«4' 33''», de John Cage, es va estrenar

in the summer of 1952,

l'estiu del 1952,

by renowned pianist David Tudor.

interpretada pel famós pianista David Tudor.

It was at the Maverick Concert hall in Woodstock, New York.

Va ser a la sala de concerts Maverick a Woodstock, Nova York.

This is a beautiful wooden building with huge openings to the outdoors.

És un bell edifici de fusta amb enormes obertures a l'exterior.

So, David Tudor walked out on stage,

David Tudor va aparèixer a l'escenari,

sat down at the piano,

es va asseure al piano,

then closed the piano lid.

i va tancar la tapa del piano.

He then sat in silence,

Aleshores va seure en silenci,

only moving to open and close the piano lid

i només es movia per obrir i tancar la tapa del piano,

between each of the three movements.

entre cada un dels tres moviments.

After the time was up,

Quan es va acabar el temps,

he got up

es va aixecar

and walked off the stage.

i va marxar de l'escenari.

(Piano music)

(Música de piano)

The audience had no idea what to think.

El públic no sabia què pensar.

It made people wonder if Cage is even taking his career seriously.

La gent es va preguntar si Cage es prenia seriosament la seva carrera.

A close friend even wrote to him,

Un amic íntim li va escriure,

begging that he not turn his career into a joke.

pregant-li que no convertís la seva carrera en una broma.

John Cage had, well, if you could call it,

John Cage havia "compost" si li podeu dir així,

composed a piece of music

una peça de música

that really challenged some very established ideas

que desafiava idees molt consolidades

about music composition.

sobre la composició musical.

It's something that musicians still debate today.

És una qüestió sobre la qual els músics encara discuteixen.

To understand just what John Cage was thinking,

Per entendre en què pensava John Cage,

let's back up to the 1940s.

reculem a la dècada dels 40.

Back then,

En aquells moments,

John Cage was making a name for himself composing for the prepared piano.

John Cage s'estava fent famós component per a un piano preparat.

(Piano music)

(Música de piano)

To make music like this,

Per fer música així,

John Cage would put objects inside the piano,

John Cage posava objectes dins el piano,

between the strings.

entre les cordes.

Things you just find lying around,

Coses que trobem pel voltant,

like screws, tape and rubber erasers.

com cargols, cintes o gomes de llapis.

So now, you've transformed the piano

De manera que ara el piano s'ha transformat

from a tonal instrument with high and low pitches

d'un instrument tonal amb tons alts i baixos,

into a collection of unique sounds.

en un conjunt de sons únics.

The music you're hearing is Cage's "Sonata V,"

La música que esteu escoltant és la "Sonata V" de Cage,

from "Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano."

de "Sonates i interludis per piano preparat".

Probably his most famous work outside of "4'33''."

Potser és la seva obra més famosa a part de «4' 33''»

This version was performed by Boris Berman.

Aquesta versió va ser interpretada per Boris Berman.

John Cage wrote incredibly detailed instructions

John Cage va escriure instruccions molt detallades

about where to place each object in the piano.

de a quin lloc del piano s'havia de col·locar cada objecte.

But it's impossible for every performer to get the exact same objects,

Però és impossible que cada intèrpret trobi exactament els mateixos objectes,

so the sound you get is always different.

o sigui que el so que s'obté sempre és diferent.

Basically, it comes down to random chance.

En essència, sempre depèn de l'atzar.

This was pretty bananas and pretty alien

Això era força esbojarrat i ben diferent

to the way most composers and musicians are taught to do things.

a la manera de fer que ensenyen als compositors i als músics.

John Cage was becoming increasingly interested

John Cage s'interessava cada cop més

in chance and randomness

en la casualitat i l'atzar.

and letting the universe provide the answer to the question

i a permetre que fos l'univers qui respongués a la pregunta

"What note should I play next?"

"Quina nota hauria de tocar a continuació?"

But to hear the answer to the question,

Però per sentir la resposta a la pregunta,

first, you have to listen.

primer, cal que escoltis.

And in the 1940s,

I en els anys quaranta,

listening to the universe was getting harder to do.

escoltar l'univers cada cop era més difícil.

(Elevator music)

(Música de fons a l'ascensor)

The Muzak company was founded in the '30s.

L'empresa Musak es va fundar als anys trenta.

It really took off,

Va tenir molt d'èxit,

and soon, there was constant background music nearly everywhere.

i ben aviat, gairebé a tot arreu se sentia constantment música de fons.

It was almost impossible to escape.

Era gairebé impossible fugir-ne.

John Cage realized that people were losing the option

John Cage es va adonar que la gent perdia la possibilitat

to shut out the background music of the world.

d'aïllar-se de la música de fons del món.

He worried that Muzak would prevent people from hearing silence altogether.

L'amoïnava que Musak impedís del tot a la gent escoltar el silenci.

In 1948,

El 1948,

four years before he wrote "4'33'',"

quatre anys abans d'escriure «4' 33''».

John Cage mentioned that he wanted to write

John Cage va comentar que volia escriure

a four-and-a-half-minute-long piece of silence

una peça de silenci de quatre minuts i mig

and sell it to the Muzak company.

i vendre-la a l'empresa Musak.

It started as something of a political statement

Va començar com una afirmació política,

or an offhand comment,

o un comentari informal,

but this idea struck a nerve and quickly evolved.

però la idea li va tocar el cor i de seguida va evolucionar.

John Cage was starting to think deeply about silence.

John Cage començava a pensar a fons sobre el silenci.

And when he visited a truly quiet place,

I quan va visitar un lloc silenciós de debò,

he made a startling discovery.

va fer una descoberta sorprenent.

John Cage visited an anechoic chamber at Harvard University.

John Cage va visitar una cambra anecoica a la Universitat de Harvard.

Anechoic chambers are rooms that are acoustically treated

Les cambres anecoiques es tracten acústicament

to minimize sound to almost zero.

per minimitzar el so a gairebé zero.

There are no sounds in these rooms,

En aquestes habitacions no hi ha sons,

so John Cage didn't expect to hear anything at all.

o sigui que John Cage esperava no sentir res de res.

But he actually heard his own blood circulating.

Però de fet va sentir la circulació de la seva sang.

(Pulse)

(Pols)

I've personally experienced an anechoic chamber,

He experimentat personalment una cambra anecoica,

and it's a really wild experience

i és una experiència brutal de debò

that can completely change your perceptions

que et canvia per complet les percepcions

about sound and silence.

sobre el so i el silenci.

It really felt like my brain just turning up an amplifier,

Sentia com si el cervell pugés el volum d'un amplificador

grasping for anything to hear.

maldant per sentir alguna cosa.

Just like John Cage,

Ben bé com John Cage,

I could very clearly hear my blood pushing through my body.

podia sentir la sang que s'obria pas pel cos.

John Cage realized, in that moment,

John Cage es va adonar, en aquell moment,

that no matter where we are, even our bodies are making sound.

que, sigui on sigui que ens trobem, fins i tot els nostres cossos fan sons.

There's basically no such thing as true silence.

En el fons, no existeix el silenci de debò.

As long as you are in your body,

Mentre estàs en el cos,

you're always hearing something.

sempre sents alguna cosa.

This is where John Cage's interest in chance and randomness

I aquí és on l'interès de John Cage per l'atzar i la casualitat

met his interest in silence.

va coincidir amb el seu interès pel silenci.

He realized that creating an environment with no distractions

Es va adonar que la creació d'un entorn sense distraccions

wasn't about creating silence.

no volia dir crear el silenci,

It wasn't even about controlling noise.

ni tan sols controlar el soroll.

It was about the sounds that were already there,

Tenia a veure amb els sons que ja hi eren,

but you suddenly hear for the first time

però que de cop escoltes per primera vegada,

when you're really ready to listen.

quan estàs disposat de debò a escoltar.

That's what's so often misunderstood about "4'33''."

Això és el que la gent tot sovint no entén de «4' 33''».

People assume it's a joke,

La gent es pensa que és una broma,

but that couldn't be further from the truth.

però no hi ha res més lluny de la realitat.

It sounds different everywhere you play it.

Sona diferent on sigui que el toquis,

And that's the point.

I aquesta és la qüestió.

What John Cage really wanted us to hear

El que John Cage volia que sentíssim

is the beauty of the sonic world around us.

és la bellesa del món sònic que ens envolta.

(Birds chirping)

(Piuladissa d'ocells)

(Overlapping voices)

(Veus superposades)

(Church bell ringing)

(Toc de campanes)

(Crickets chirping and owl hooting)

(Carrisqueig de grills i xiscle d'òliba)

"4'33''" should be a mindful experience

«4' 33''» ha de ser una experiència conscient

that helps you focus on accepting things just the way they are.

que t'ajudi a centrar-te en acceptar les coses tal com són.

It's not something that anyone else can tell you how you're supposed to feel.

No és res que un altre et pugui dir com has de sentir.

It's deeply personal.

És profundament personal.

It also brings up some pretty big questions

També suscita preguntes importants

about our sonic world.

sobre el nostre món sònic.

Is "4'33''" music, is it sound,

¿«4' 33''» és música, és so,

is sound music?

és música de sons?

Is there even a difference?

I és que hi ha diferència?

John Cage reminds us

John Cage ens recorda

that music isn't the only kind of sound worth listening to.

que la música no és l'únic tipus de so que val la pena escoltar.

All sounds are worth thinking about.

Tots els sons mereixen que hi pensem.

We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity

Tenim una oportunitat única

to reset our ears.

de reiniciar l'oïda.

And if we become more conscious of what we hear,

I si esdevenim més conscients del que escoltem,

we'll inherently make our world sound better.

segur que farem que el món ens soni millor.

Quietness is not when we turn off our minds to sound,

El silenci no és tancar la ment al so,

but when we can really start to listen

sinó quan podem començar a escoltar de debò

and hear the world in all of its sonic beauty.

i sentir el món en tota la seva bellesa sònica.

So in this spirit,

Doncs amb aquesta actitud

let's perform "4'33''" together,

tocarem junts «4' 33''»,

wherever you are.

sigueu on sigueu.

It's three movements,

Són tres moviments,

and I'll let you know when they start.

i us faré saber quan comencen.

Listen to the texture and rhythm of the sounds around you right now.

Escolteu la textura i el ritme dels sons que us envolten ara mateix.

Listen for the loud and soft,

Escolteu el fort i el fluix,

the harmonic, the dissonant,

l'harmònic i el dissonant,

and all the small details that make every sound unique.

i tots els petits detalls que fan que cada so sigui únic.

Spend this time as mindful and focused in this real-life sonic moment.

Feu-ho amb consciència plena i centreu-vos en aquest moment sònic de la vida real.

Enjoy the magnificence of hearing and listening.

Gaudiu de l'esplendor de sentir i escoltar.

So here comes the first movement.

Ara ve el primer moviment,

Starting ...

Començant...

now.

ara.

[I. Tacet]

[I. Tacet]

(No audio)

(Sense àudio)

And here's movement two.

I aquest és el segon moviment.

It will be two minutes and 23 seconds.

Durarà dos minuts i 23 segons.

[II. Tacet]

[II. Tacet]

(No audio)

(Sense àudio)

And here is the final movement.

I aquest és el moviment final.

It will be one minute and 40 seconds.

Durarà un minut i 40 segons.

[III. Tacet]

[III. Tacet]

(No audio)

(Sense àudio)

And that's it.

I ja està.

We did it.

Ho hem fet.

Thanks for listening.

Gràcies per escoltar.