World's First Silent Ringtone - a la John Cage

Conceptual artist Jonathon Keats has created the world's first silent ringtone, a bootleg of John Cage's famous piano piece that contains four minutes and 33 seconds of silence. Cage performed 4'33" live before an audience in 1952. Keats wrote "My Cage," a 4:33 minute ringtone of pure, unadulterated silence. You can get it for free from Start Mobile, a ringtone distributor, and Keats urges people to remix and mashup his ringtone as much as they wish.

From the ringtone ad:

A remastering, "My Cage" is also a remix, introducing serendipity into the equation, delivering performances unpredictably, whenever calls come unexpectedly. The silence may take place without the listener being aware of it. Or the listener may hear a call - phantom silence - when there's no one on the line. "My Cage" all-encompassing: Even those who don't use it as a ringtone have the potential to experience it, in the silence of an unanswered call. Note: To fully enjoy this work, and to give callers the opportunity to enjoy the complete silence as well, it is recommended that you turn off your voicemail.

I grew up in Rockland County, NY where Cage had a house in Stony Point. When I was young, we used to drive by and look at it - it was a circular house, like a dark tin can. John Cage pushed the envelope of modern music, and he did it with grace and style. I will never forget his influence on me as both a musician and now, as a programmer. John Cage (and followers like Terry Riley, Steve Reich, and Philip Glass) understood the Zen of music and helped me to understand the Zen of programming.

Do you remember your Mantra?

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