Max Neuhaus - Four Realizations of Stockhausen's Zyklus (Alga Marghen, 2004)

Perhaps the biggest regret people having regarding Max Neuhaus' life is how little of it was captured to tape. I certainly am guilty of this lament and would without a doubt leap at an opportunity to hear any uncovered remnants of the late mastermind's work. Still, there is a certain magic to his concise representation, as if there really weren't much more one could ask him to do to prove himself. In fact, I dare say you could reduce his recorded output to these recordings of Stockhausen's No. 9 Zyklus for One Percussionist and his Fontana Mix-Feed and walk away downright impressed with and even intimidated by Neuhaus. Both are powerful testaments to his mind, with Fontana Mix-Feed showing his more practical side and Zyklus giving insight into his composure under pressure.

Stockhausen composed Zyklus in 1959 to be performed in percussion competitions, with its debut realization given by Christoph Caskel the same year. The piece is built around a spiral bound score with no defined start or orientation--the performer would choose where to begin and whether to read left to right or right to left--set to end when one meets back at the beginning note. To perform it, a twenty-one piece array of percussion instruments is set up in a circle, corresponding to the same spiral that forms the score. Though intended to be performed spontaneously, the three performers at the time who had successfully played Zyklus did so by making the decisions in advance and working out their own score.

Neuhaus, being Neuhaus, took the bait and did it right. His notorious problem solving ability came into play, working out the necessary techniques, but never the actual sequence of performance. One can only be so nimble minded. He first performed the piece for his graduation recital from Manhattan School of Music. At least a year separates each of these four performances, each starting at a new point within the score, each with a pace all its own. You can hear how Neuhaus' approach and confidence in playing the Zyklus evolved over time, though in each there lies a spontaneity by far serving the piece justice. The corresponding dates and locations are as follows:

1. Wergo Records Studios, 1963
2. Carnegie Recital Hall, NYC, 1964
3. West Deursche Rundfunk Studios, Cologne, Germany, 1965
4. Columbia Records Studios, NYC, 1968

Zyklus

Max Neuhaus - Fontana Mix-Feed (Alga Marghen, 2003)

Of the six interpretations of Cage's Fontana Mix featured here, four came from an LP issued by Mass Art, another from Neuhaus' Electronics & Percussion, and the last previously unreleased. Fontana Mix is an indeterminate score, the structure of which is determined by the performer who superimposes several sheets and transparencies with a grid. On its own, the piece is intended for tape, although it may be used in conjunction with other Cage scores for instruments and voice.


For Neuhaus' approach to the piece, which he subtitled Feed, he attached four contact mics to the skins of two timpani and routed those mic signals to a pair loudspeakers, each aimed at the timpani. The mics and thus the ensuing feedback loop were controlled by a mixer, with the volume levels determined through the Fontana Mix score. This relatively simple configuration allowed for a complex variety of outcomes, as the oscillations that occur are influenced by the room itself, the drums used, the size and location of the loudspeakers, as well as the other objects in the room and even the climate. The date and location of each performance follows:

1 Solo Recital, Mandell Hall, University Of Chicago, April 13, 1965
2 Solo Recital, New School For Social Research Auditorium, New York City, June 4, 1965
3 Solo Recital, Festival ZAJ1, Madrid, November 27, 1965
4 Solo Recital, Carnagie Recital Hall, New York December 1, 1966
5 Columbia Records Studios, New York City, 1968
6 West Deutsche Rundfunk Studios, Cologne, 1965

Fontana Mix-Feed

Max Neuhaus - Electronics & Percussion (Columbia, 1968)

I'm not going to mince words: I love this guy. Max Neuhaus was a maniac about everything he'd ever done and the mere thought of him makes me a maniac too. If he were just a bonkers percussionist, I'd still love him. But he's more. He designed and implemented some of the most ridiculous sound works and took the training wheels off of electro-acoustics. He passed away in February of 2009, leaving behind a legacy of absolute brilliance.

Electronics & Percussion is sort of a Neuhaus vs. New Music venture, winner takes all. And Neuhaus doesn't back down. One by one, he wipes 'em clean out. Included are the following:

1. Four Systems - For Four Amplified Cymbals (Earle Brown)
2. The King of Denmark (Morton Feldman)
3. Coeur Pour Batteur - Positively Yes (Sylvano Bussotti)
4. No. 9 Zyklus for One Percussionist (Karlheinz Stockhausen)
5. Fontana Mix-Feed (John Cage)

The last two are the most of note. Neuhaus absolutely made "Fontana Mix" his own, but more of that in the future.

Electronics & Percussion

This record somewhat soured Neuhaus to the notion of himself as a musician and he turned to sound art and installations. He surreptitiously installed a sound work in a subway vent in Times Square and ran it off the city's juice for twenty years, only pulling the plug when he decided to leave the city. Neuhaus was urged to reinstall the piece, doing so in 2002. A short video from street side of what can be heard follows: