What is Silence Worth?

[Wombat]

I know we've discussed John Cage's '4'33'' of silence before. Today I discovered a bizarre postscript to that story. British composer, Mike Batt, was sued by the John Cage trust for plagiarism for a piece of his entitled 'A One Minute Silence.' I can't remember seeing this mentioned here before so I add the story for your amusement. After I heard this story it immediately occurred to me that any composer at all who included even a second of silence in his or her composition could have sued Cage for building a whole composition out of one of that composer's motifs. I love Batt's reason for regarding his work superior. Here is the story:


LONDON, England -- A bizarre legal battle over a minute's silence in a recorded song has ended with a six-figure out-of-court settlement.

British composer Mike Batt found himself the subject of a plagiarism action for including the song, "A One Minute Silence," on an album for his classical rock band The Planets.

He was accused of copying it from a work by the late American composer John Cage, whose 1952 composition "4'33"" was totally silent.

On Monday, Batt settled the matter out of court by paying an undisclosed six-figure sum to the John Cage Trust.

Batt, who is best known in the UK for his links with the children's television characters The Wombles, told the Press Association: "This has been, albeit a gentlemanly dispute, a most serious matter and I am pleased that Cage's publishers have finally been persuaded that their case was, to say the least, optimistic.

"We are, however, making this gesture of a payment to the John Cage Trust in recognition of my own personal respect for John Cage and in recognition of his brave and sometimes outrageous approach to artistic experimentation in music."

Batt credited "A One Minute Silence" to "Batt/Cage."

Before the start of the court case, Batt had said: "Has the world gone mad? I'm prepared to do time rather than pay out. We are talking as much as £100,000 in copyright.

"Mine is a much better silent piece. I have been able to say in one minute what Cage could only say in four minutes and 33 seconds."

Batt gave a cheque to Nicholas Riddle, managing director of Cage's publishers Peters Edition, on the steps of the High Court, in London.

Riddle said: "We feel that honour has been settled.

"We had been prepared to make our point more strongly on behalf of Mr Cage's estate, because we do feel that the concept of a silent piece -- particularly as it was credited by Mr Batt as being co-written by "Cage" -- is a valuable artistic concept in which there is a copyright.

"We are nevertheless very pleased to have reached agreement with Mr Batt over this dispute, and we accept his donation in good spirit."

"A One Minute Silence" has now been released as part of a double A-side single.

www.cnn.com/2002/SHOWBIZ/Music/09/23/uk.silence/


 
 
 

[dubhlinn]

Mike Batt has also done an awful lot of producing and composing work outside of the Wombles. He wrote and produced Kate Meulahs recent mega selling CD which was an absolutely dire affair altogether. It is one of those CDs that appeals to people who buy one CD a year, becomes a huge it and then vanishes into obscurity.
It does not surprise me that he has £100K to throw around on what is clearly, to my way of thinking, a publicity stunt. If all those young kids who have never heard of John Cage rush out to buy the single, for a laugh, then Batt will be laughing all the way to the bank.

This would not be the first "novelty" single to make it to the top of the charts and being a double A side, there is something there to satisfy the radio stations fear of silence, or Deadtime in the jargon.

Clever ploy,


Slan,
D.

[Joseph E. Smith]

...

British composer Mike Batt found himself the subject of a plagiarism action for including the song, "A One Minute Silence," on an album for his classical rock band The Planets....

... in my book, this would certainly qualify as a frivolous lawsuit. And if I were the judge in this case, I would dismiss the case and generously levy some heavy fines all around... until somebody cheers up

[Jack]

We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls.

[gonzo914]

Silence is the virtue of fools.

[Jack]

Silence is the virtue of fools.

I participate in an hour of silent group worship at least once a week, sometimes more.

I must be a fool.

[littlejohngael]

Silence is the virtue of fools.

I participate in an hour of silent group worship at least once a week, sometimes more.

I must be a fool.

"God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise..." 1 Corinthians 1:27a

[Jack]

I participate in an hour of silent group worship at least once a week, sometimes more.

I must be a fool.

"God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise..." 1 Corinthians 1:27a

Yay!

[Flyingcursor]

I participate in an hour of silent group worship at least once a week, sometimes more.

I must be a fool.

"God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise..." 1 Corinthians 1:27a

Pwn3d! Sorry Gonzo but that was a good retort.

[GaryKelly]

Silence is the virtue of fools.

Some of us get it, gonzdood.

[Jack]

Silence is the virtue of fools.

Some of us get it, gonzdood.

And some of us are fools.

[GaryKelly]

Some of us get it, gonzdood.

And some of us are fools.

Yes, and some are fools who are not virtuous. And they are not virtuous because...?

[Jack]

Some of us get it, gonzdood.

And some of us are fools.

Yes, and some are fools who are not virtuous. And they are not virtuous because...?

...gonzo said so.

[gonzo914]

. . . and he went and hanged himself.

Go and do thou likewise.

[Wombat]

Just for the record, Mother Theresa obviously didn't get out much to observe nature. Trees don't make much noise growing, to be sure. But the soundtrack to their growing, the noise of the forest, is quite loud and varied. Ever been in a jungle or forest at night?