July 30, 2002

   Come on, feel the silence
   by Matthew Connolly

   Wombles composer Mike Batt has been accused of copying John Cage's
   'silent' work.  Surely, argues our correspondent, he deserves applause,
   not a writ

   Wombling free is not what Mike Batt, the man behind the Wombles songs,
   will be doing if he loses a copyright battle with the publishers of
   the American avant-garde composer John Cage.  He has been accused of
   plagiarising Cages 1952 silent work 4 33, which involves a pianist
   opening up a piano lid and, well, not playing the piano for four and
   a half minutes or so.

   Batts joke piece A Minutes Silence, on the album he produced for
   the classical group The Planets, has fallen flat, and he has had to
   perform his silence in court to try to prove that its original.  He
   cannot believe that it has been taken so seriously:  As my mother
   said, Which bit of his four minutes and 33 seconds are they claiming
   you stole? he says.

   ...

     http://www.timesonline.co.uk/printFriendly/0,,1-47-368952,00.html

"Jon Gallant" <[log in to unmask]>