John Cage's Sonatas & Interludes for prepared piano S&D

my local library has a copy of that tilbury LP!

its time I re-listened: I've been enjoying 'etudes australes' as played grete sultan.

there are so many recordings of this and so many of them leave me cold, but you can tell a good one usually within the first thirty seconds

Cage: "If you want to adhere to past models, listen to the recording by Maro Ajemian... & then attempt to imitate that preparation."

hers was the first recording, 1951, out for a few seconds on CRI, out of print. it's definitely got something.

I also like the Julie Steinberg version a lot. And James Tenney has been threatening to release a version, and he should, his preparations have an incredible ear for intervals & consonances, the chords & harmonies really resonate when he plays the piece... it becomes as much about harmony as it does rhythmic lines in his hands. A few tracks came out on a Musicworks Magazine CD two years ago.

& I sure would love to hear the Tilbury

Its funny bcz I heard it years ago -- perharps the first cage I ever got hold of -- liked the transformation but not enough to even tape, and remembering that i've prob spent more time looking at the sleeve with its detailed instructions as to how to prepare a piano than actually listening to Tilbury play the score, and since I did not come across anyone else using the prepared piano (therefore thought the concept ws a bit thin but so many people prepare instruments nowdays that its prob not quite the case), I left it and never thought about getting borrowing this again.

"you can tell a good one usually within the first thirty seconds"

Wow, really? I bought this one...

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000026C18/qid=1131528417/sr=8-1/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i1_xgl/202-6633318-2989451

And enjoyed it greatly. I need to hear more.