High Wire: Calder’s Circus at 100 | Media

Listen to a playlist inspired by Calder’s Circus created by artist, composer, and musician Gryphon Rue. Rue writes:

“Drawing from the history of Calder’s engagement with sound, this playlist expands the narrative of vernacular music in Cirque Calder (Calder’s Circus), bringing popular tunes and circus marches into a broader dialogue with the artist’s appetite for new sounds in cosmic, avant-garde music. Calder enjoyed lifelong friendships with composers, particularly Edgard Varèse, ‘godfather of electronic music,’ as well as a younger generation that included Pierre Boulez, John Cage, and Earle Brown. Many composers were influenced by Calder’s mobiles, which profoundly impacted the music of the post-World War II classical avant-garde. Music was also an essential part of Cirque Calder. Specific 78 rpm shellac records were played during each circus act, and Calder not only ventriloquized for the performers but also employed makeshift whistles, horns, harmonicas, and percussion of his own design. Sound plays a vital role in many of his sculptures as well. The story of Calder and sound continues today, through new strains of open-form works, structured improvisation, and abstract musical collage.”