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Items Interview with Merce Cunningham on the Sound of dance (Radio program), 1981-03-15

Interview with Merce Cunningham on the Sound of dance (Radio program), 1981-03-15: and, excerpt from an unidentified musical theater performance

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LIBRARY DIVISION
Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound

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COLLECTION
Merce Cunningham Dance Foundation Collection. Audio materials

This Item

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Title
Interview with Merce Cunningham on the Sound of dance (Radio program), 1981-03-15: and, excerpt from an unidentified musical theater performance
Additional title: Fractions (Choreographic work : Cunningham)
Additional title: Sound of dance (Radio program)
Names
Merce Cunningham Dance Company (Associated name)
Cunningham, Merce (Interviewee)
Gibson, Jon (Composer)
Gruen, John (Host)
WNCN (Radio station : New York, N.Y.) (Broadcaster)
Collection

Merce Cunningham Dance Foundation Collection. Audio materials

Dates / Origin
Date Created: 1981-03-15
Place: New York, NY.
Library locations
Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound
Shelf locator: *LTC-A 1197
Topics
Cunningham, Merce
Merce Cunningham Dance Company
10's with shoes (Choreographic work : Cunningham)
Channels/Inserts (Choreographic work : Cunningham)
Fielding sixes (Choreographic work : Cunningham)
Fractions (Choreographic work : Cunningham)
Choreography
Musical theater
Music and dance
Gibson, Jon. Equal distribution. No. 1. Selections
Genres
Music
Live sound recordings
Interviews
Notes
Content: Title provided by cataloger based on audition and handwritten notes on original container and cassette.
Venue: Broadcast March 15, 1981 by radio station WNCN-FM, New York, on its series the Sound of dance.
Content: Handwritten notes on original container and cassette: "Merce Cunningham: Interview with John Gruen WNCN 15 March 1981".
Numbering: Donor's inventory number: C374.
Venue: Musical theater performance recorded live in an unidentified location and date.
Acquisition: Gift; Merce Cunningham Dance Foundation, 2011-2012.
Physical Description
Audiocassette
Extent: 1 audiocassette (76 minutes) : analog
Sound quality is fair; the speakers are very muffled and at times, inaudible.
Description
Streaming file 1, Side a: Host John Gruen introduces Merce Cunningham; Cunningham and Gruen briefly debate the description of Cunningham's work as intellectual; Cunningham speaks about generating unique movement in his choreography; his 10's with shoes (1981), including the origin of the title and its upcoming premiere; Cunningham's interest in the independence of the performance elements of decor/design, sound, and dance; his Fielding sixes (1980), including briefly the origins of the choreography and its title; his Channels/Inserts (1981), and working with dance for the camera; Gruen speaks about Cunningham as a performer; Cunningham speaks about his theory of dance and movement, especially in relation to ballet; more on innovating movement and his interest in activating the mind of the viewer; briefly, his interest in pedestrian movement; his use of chance methods in choreography and the challenge it poses to a dancer; excerpt of music for Fractions (1977), Jon Gibson's Equal distribution no. 1 (1977), 23:46-26:45; they briefly discuss the abstract nature of Cunningham's work; Gruen announces Merce Cunningham Dance Company performances at City Center, March 17-29, 1981; Cunningham speaks about his intentions as a choreographer and how he envisions communicating with his audience; Cunningham speaks about sources of artistic influence outside of dance; Gruen quotes a New York Times article on Cunningham's influence on post-modern dance; Cunningham speaks about some of the changes in the field of dance from when his career began; briefly, his relationship to Martha Graham as an apprentice, rather than a disciple; the dance qualities he learned from Graham that he continues to use; his approach to teaching and the structure of his dance technique classes; more on re-thinking movement as a result of working with dance on camera; briefly, how Cunningham chooses dancers; ends abruptly. Streaming file 2, Side b: Begins abruptly; Merce Cunningham, continues to speak with John Gruen about the qualities he looks for in dancers and coaching dancers; excerpt of Equal distribution no. 1, 2:09-3:37; Cunningham briefly speaks about how the dance Fractions has its own phrasing, separate from the music; more on the relationship between the music and choreography, including how his dancers navigate the structures of both disciplines; Gruen concludes the show; unidentified live musical theater performance begins abruptly, 9:13-30:38.
Type of Resource
Sound recording
Languages
English
Identifiers
RLIN/OCLC: 913795707
NYPL catalog ID (B-number): b20730821
Universal Unique Identifier (UUID): 653c74d0-b8cd-0133-c933-60f81dd2b63c
Rights Statement
This item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

Item timeline of events

  • 1981: Created
  • 2024: Found by you!
  • 2025

MLA Format

Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound, The New York Public Library. "Interview with Merce Cunningham on the Sound of dance (Radio program), 1981-03-15" The New York Public Library Digital Collections. 1981. https://qa-digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/69761780-b8cd-0133-5abe-60f81dd2b63c

Chicago/Turabian Format

Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound, The New York Public Library. "Interview with Merce Cunningham on the Sound of dance (Radio program), 1981-03-15" New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed November 25, 2024. https://qa-digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/69761780-b8cd-0133-5abe-60f81dd2b63c

APA Format

Rodgers and Hammerstein Archives of Recorded Sound, The New York Public Library. (1981). Interview with Merce Cunningham on the Sound of dance (Radio program), 1981-03-15 Retrieved from https://qa-digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/69761780-b8cd-0133-5abe-60f81dd2b63c

Wikipedia Citation

<ref name=NYPL>{{cite web | url=https://qa-digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/69761780-b8cd-0133-5abe-60f81dd2b63c | title= (sound recording) Interview with Merce Cunningham on the Sound of dance (Radio program), 1981-03-15, (1981)|author=Digital Collections, The New York Public Library |accessdate=November 25, 2024 |publisher=The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox, and Tilden Foundations}}</ref>

Interview with Merce Cunningham on the Sound of dance (Radio program), 1981-03-15