Outside of John Cage- 4'33...

[never/ever]

....what is your favorite quietest track?

[ConnyOlivetti]

[TG]

Someone would have posted this eventually -

[clive gash]

Does 4’33” have to be quiet? The performers don’t play their instruments so the audience have to concentrate on the noises of their environment but what if the environment is noisy?

*hmmm*

[Count Machuki]

Does 4’33” have to be quiet? The performers don’t play their instruments so the audience have to concentrate on the noises of their environment but what if the environment is noisy?

*hmmm*

I'm gonna pitch my orchestras on a performance at a steel mill.

[Phenomenal Cat]

I went to a Wilco show and you wouldn't believe how many people turn their backs to the stage and just yap.

They also look at each others' phones.

[harvey k-tel]

I sometimes listen to 'Reign In Blood' at a barely audible volume while eating popcorn.

[naughty boy]

Does 4’33” have to be quiet? The performers don’t play their instruments so the audience have to concentrate on the noises of their environment but what if the environment is noisy?

*hmmm*

It does interest me.

And what if there's a fire alarm and they have to evacuate the building?

'how was 4'33" this evening darling?'

'fucking SHIT. we only got to 2'17" then some jobsworth cunt kicked us out!'

[naughty boy]

Would the musicians then get half pay?

[naughty boy]

I think it's cool and not pretentious, for what it's worth.

[Count Machuki]

Would the musicians then get half pay?

Orchestra musicians NEVER get half pay.

[naughty boy]

No?

What if they cough?

[Sneelock]

Would the musicians then get half pay?

Orchestra musicians NEVER get half pay.

that's why God created the Synclavier.

[bobzilla77]

Remember - the musician's performance fee also covers the price of rehearsal.

[never/ever]

You are all mental.

I used it because I surmised some funny bastard would post it as the answer to the initial question.

[Snarfyguy]

The quietest band I ever saw live was Magnetic Fields. This was back before 69 Love Songs at some Princeton frat house. The audience was very engaged and respectful, which was good because you could *barely* hear them from 20 feet away.

[Charlie O.]

The quietest band I ever saw live was Magnetic Fields. This was back before 69 Love Songs at some Princeton frat house. The audience was very engaged and respectful, which was good because you could *barely* hear them from 20 feet away.

I saw them shortly before 69 Love Songs was released, at a rock club, and they might have been a bit louder than that but not much. About a third of the audience - the third closest to the stage - was quiet and respectful. The other two thirds were noisily drinking and yakking to each other. (I swear DC audiences are the worst.) I saw them earlier that day doing an in-store and that was much better from a "being able to hear them" standpoint.

I've seen Calvin Johnson and Jonathan Richman (not together) play and sing without amplification, doing kind of a strolling minstrel kinda thing. They both got away with it.

[Charlie O.]