The prepared piano is a piano which has had objects placed between or on the strings, or on the hammers or dampers. "Preparing" the piano in this way alters the instrument's timbre, creating a whole new range of sounds. No musician is more associated with the prepared piano than John Cage, who used it extensively and popularized it.
Sonatas and Interludes is probably his most accessible and popular work. It was inspired by Cage's study of Indian philosophy, and the composition is partly a pursuit of the Hindu ideal of tranquility. The preparation of the piano involved placing nuts, bolts and pieces of rubber in between and wrapped around the strings. For the most part, the sounds created are either sonorous bell tones or more percussive than a usual piano (though not in this piece, Cage attempted to recreate an entire percussion ensemble using just a prepared piano).
These compositions have practically nothing in common with classical sonata form (his choice of that particular term seems completely arbitrary). Cage borrowed heavily from Eastern music, in particular traditional Indonesian gamelan (a heavily percussive ensemble). The main appeal of Sonatas and Interludes (for myself at least) is the rhythmic structuring. Cage's approach to rhythm is deeply mathematical, placing every note very specifically. Exactly what the patterns are is way, way beyond me. Still, while most listeners may not be able to understand why, one can't help feel the intensely ordered nature of the music. It's pretty cool.
John Cage - Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano
Buy the album here.
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