#3 Silence is music, too

Since John Cage’s 4:33, everybody knows that:

Silence can be music.
Because there isn’t any silence when listening to music outside an anechoic chamber.

Silence can be music in and of itself. A silent or at least a near-silent break in music will highlight what’s happening before or after it. Metal bands have been using that idea for quite some time in some of the so-called ‘breakdowns.’

So, try if a general pause (“Generalpause” in German…) might enhance the flow of a piece or might be helpful with creating light and shade.

Or: Slowly remove parts step by step until total silence. Then build them up again. Maybe do this in a different order or with a slightly changed sound. This will make details in your music stand out that otherwise might go unnoticed.

Visual artists and graphic designers have known and used that white-space is part of the (visual) composition, too. “Empty” spaces define what’s not emptiness.

A related notion is expressed by Frank Zappa in this quote from “The Real Frank Zappa Book”:

“The most important thing in art is The Frame. For painting: literally; for other arts: figuratively– because, without this humble appliance, you can’t know where The Art stops and The Real World begins. You have to put a ‘box’ around it because otherwise, what is that shit on the wall?”

Silence can be such a frame.

A few examples

This one exists just because of the gorgeous sound of the reverb on the percussion track (actually, this is related to another creative strategy which will be discussed in a future post).