John Cage 100 / Various artists (Wergo)
"Wergo’s handsomely produced box set was assembled for last year’s 2012 John Cage centenary. Fans will lap it up, and one hopes that curious newcomers will take the plunge and open their ears to this extraordinary, approachable music. Joshua Pierce’s 1970s album of the Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano still sounds definitive. Cage’s Table of Preparations is included in the booklet, listing in alarming detail the position, size and orientation of every bolt, washer and screw inserted in Pierce’s piano. Inevitably, you start to wonder if the bell-like sounds and echoes of gamelan music would come across differently if the screws were placed at random. Still, the wonder lies in hearing these tiny pieces packing an expressive punch out all proportion to their miniature scale."
Graham Dickson, www.theartsdesk.com February 2, 2013, United Kingdom
"Almost the first thing you'll notice about Pierce's playing is the steady, calm yet totally confident command with which he paces and navigates through the intricacies of some of the composer's most engaging and enticing works for solo piano. "
Read Mark Sealey's Classical.Net review here
"The highlight on this set is the transcendent live performance by Pierce of Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano."
Read Lewis
Whittington's Concertonet.com review here
John Cage 2-CD set was featured on Q2 Music's (WQXR's online station for contemporary music) Album of the Week for August 24 - August 31, 2012.
"There are few pianists as equipped to tackle the polarizing music of John Cage as powerfully as Joshua Pierce...Pierce’s balance of careful technique and violent abandon throughout offer a profound and accessible portrait of the landscape-changing composer." - Read the entire review here
For more reviews of John Cage: A Tribute, click here
