Nothing: John Cage and 4'33"

What does nothing sound like? An offbeat history of John Cage’s 4’33”, a musical composition of blank bars, illustrated by Caldecott Medalist Chris Raschka.

One night in 1952, master pianist David Tudor took the stage in a barnlike concert hall called the Maverick. A packed audience waited with bated breath for him to start playing. Little did they know that the performance had already begun.

A rain patters.
A tree rustles.
An audience stirs.

David was performing John Cage’s 4’33”, whose purpo...