Credo In Us
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Credo in Us is a musical composition by the American experimental music composer, writer and visual artist John Cage. It was written in July, 1942 and revised in October of that year.
Styled as a dramatic playlet for Two Characters, Cage described Credo in Us as a a suite with a satirical character It was composed to accompany a piece of contemporary dance choreographed by his partner and collaborator Merce Cunningham and choreographer Jean Erdman, who performed the piece at its premiere in Bennington College, Vermont in August 1942. After the first performance the subtitle of the piece was changed to "A Suburban Idyll"
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[edit] Instrumentation
One of a number of Cage's percussive work, Credo In Us is unusual in using sound samples from recordings of other works (Cage suggested Dvorak, Beethoven, Sibelius or Shostakovich), fragments of radio broadcast, popular music, tin cans and tom toms.
The instrumentation for the original performance included 4 performers: a pianist; two percussionists playing muted gongs, tin cans, electric buzzer and tom-toms; and a performer operating the radio or phonograph; Jean Erdman recalls that for the first performance a 'tack-piano' was used - one of Cage's prepared pianos, though the pianist is also called upon to play the soundbox of the instrument as a percussionist.
[edit] Recordings
- John Cage: Music for Percussion Quartet Mainz Percussion Ensemble (WWE1CD 20015)
- Credo in us...: More Works for Percussion Quatuor Helios (ASIN: B00005OCG3)
- Credo in Us' Musica Negativa, conducted by Reiner Riehn
- Will You Give Me to Tell You (ASIN: B0000E69JQ)
