Birdcage: 73'20.958" for a Composer

In celebration of the John Cage's 100th birthday, Wergo presents the world premiere DVD release of BirdCage: 73'20.958" for a composer. The legendary film collage, created in 1972 on the occasion of Cage's 60th birthday and premiered at the Donaueschingen Music Festival, paints an extraordinary picture of Cage the artist, exploring his musical and extra-musical thinking, his character and his remarkable oeuvre. Released here in the unabridged original version for the first time, the film was a collaboration between the composer and writer Hans G Helms. Helms assembled various film materials into a special kind of mosaic, featuring historical flashbacks, biographical milestones and musical performances. It is complemented by original commentary from the composer's contemporaries, companions and friends, such as Carolyn Brown, Phillip Corner, Merce Cunningham, Teeny Duchamp, Don Gillespie, Doris Hays, Frederik Rzewski, Grete Sultan, Margaret Tan, David Tudor and Paul Zukofsky. The twittering of birds - a symbol of the aesthetically unintentional and basic material of Cage's tape composition BirdCage - is a unifying thread heard throughout the film.