Erik Satie liked to put some comedy in his music. Although he is known for serious, introverted music, some of his works wear titles like ‘Three pieces in the shape of a pear’, and ‘Flabby preludes for a Dog’. In one of his scores, there is an instruction for the musician: ‘become pale’.
Other composers also made jokes like this. La Monte Young has a music piece that has no notes, just thesse instructions: “Bring a bale of hay and a bucket of water onto the stage for the piano to eat and drink. The performer may then feed the piano or leave it to eat by itself. If the former, the piece is over after the piano has been fed. If the latter, it is over after the piano eats or decides not to.”
Other composers also made jokes like this. La Monte Young has a music piece that has no notes, just thesse instructions: “Bring a bale of hay and a bucket of water onto the stage for the piano to eat and drink. The performer may then feed the piano or leave it to eat by itself. If the former, the piece is over after the piano has been fed. If the latter, it is over after the piano eats or decides not to.”
La Monte Young: contemporary music
