Narayana’s Cows
‘Narayana’s Cows’ is one of Tom Johnson’s most popular works, and since we started playing the work in 2007 it has quickly become of the most appreciated Ensemble Klang pieces. It is based on a 14th Century problem posed by the Indian mathematician Narayana.
- 1 Jan 1989
Featured in
Performances
- 6 Apr 2017, World Minimal Music Festival, Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ, Amsterdam
- 22 Oct 2011, Issue Project Room, Brooklyn, New York
- 21 Oct 2011, Griswold Hall, Baltimore
- 10 Sep 2010, Paradiso, Amsterdam
- 13 Mar 2010, Orgelpark, Amsterdam
- 15 Feb 2010, Reina Sofia, Madrid, Spain
- 6, 7 & 8 June 2008, Lichtenberg, Maastricht
- 30 Nov 2007, Korzo, The Hague
Tom Johnson
Tom Johnson (b. 1939) belongs to a rich tradition of artists, from Marcel Duchamp through John Cage, who prefer ‘finding’ to ‘creating’. In Johnson’s case, a surprising musical beauty is found in the regularity, logic and symmetry of pre-existing mathematical structures. A clarity of texture, an ear for transparent harmony and a preference for simple and elegant rhythmical designs are more than mere characteristics of Johnson’s sound world, they are structural determinants that drive the forms themselves.
