Sextet-The Tiger's Mind

bv CorneliusCardew

Daypiece The dgcr fightsthe rnind that lovesthe circlethat trapsthe tiger. The circlcis pcrfectand outsidetime.The wind blowsdustin Anry rcfccts,rclaxes with hcr tnind, which puts out tigcrs'cycs. and Amy jumps throughthecircle buds(cmulates tree). thc in comfortsthe tiger.Thc tiger sleeps the tree.High wind. Amy The tiger in climbsthe tree,which groans the wind and succumbs. bums.

Nightpiece
The tiger burns and sniftsthe wind for news. He storms at the while circle;if inside to get out, if ou$ide to get in. Amy sleeps the tiger hunts. Shedreamsof the wind, which then comesand wakes her. The tree trips Amy in the dark and in her fall she recognizes mind. The mind, rocked by the wind tittering her in the leavesof the tree,and strangledby the circle,goeson the to nod. The circle is trying to teachits secrets the tree.The tree laughsat the rnind and at the tiger fighting it.

@ t g 6 l b y H i n rich se n Ed itio n L td , L o n d o n .

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7 1 Cs

Interpretation of this piecc is to be vicwcd hopcfirlly as a continuousproccss. Initially the two tcxts given above should be regardedas limiring (ic, play thc givcn actionsin the givcn order), the Daypieceand Nightpiecc being usedfor perforrnanccon alternatcoccasions.All musicians should memorize the text to bc used. Subsequently new accions and situarions may bc allowed to arisespontaneously, concurrentor interleavedwith the given oncs; also the succcssion cventsmay be altered,lnore or lessat random of (eg, a pcrfomranceof thc Daypiecemight open with thc riger asleep the in tree, or thc mind loving the circle, or Amy's mind putting out buds, etc). After additional expericnce may be desirable devisenew rcxrs it to involving the samcsix charactcrs-the new texts should then be memorized as before. Finally it may be possible play without a text, simply improvisins to actionsand situationsinvolving the six characters. Initially the six charactcrs rnay be played by six musicians, eachonc knowing which rolcs arc allocatedto thc other players. Later, cach nrusician may selecthis own rolc and allocatcthc othcr fivc roles without telling the other players (so that playcr A may selccttrce for himself and regard B as tigcr, whilc B hassclectcd tree alsoand regardsA ascircle-in this case alrcady we havc two aspects trcc prcsentat once). Alternatively, eachplayer may of selccthis own rolc and allocatcthc other five in the courseof play, as requircd by thc perfornranccof his own role. Logically, after this stageit is no longer so irnportant that there be six players. When there arc nlore than n'raybc duplicatedor rnultiplied as oftcn as six playersthe charactcrs neccssary.Howcvcr, Anry should ncver be duplicated (obviously it might as happenthat two playcrsboth rcgard themselves Amy, but this is allowablc hinuelf as the orrJyA-y). When there are rz as long as cach onc rcgards or lnorc playcrsthc rolcs should be allocatedby a performanccdirector and made common knowlcdge amongst the musicians(eg, performers r-6 are trecs,7 is Amy, 8 and 9 make up a circle, ro is the wind and the rest are tigcrs). When there are lessthan six players,peoplc or objectsor sound sources outsidethe group may bc usedas dummies-without necessarily if informing thenr of thcir rolc (for instance, thcre are four playersit might be convenicnt to takc a slcepingonlooker-or an object in a slceping position or a tape-rccordingof snoring-and placea tree-objectin a position the such that hc becor.ncs tiger sleepingin the tree. He may sleepon for the duration of thc performancc. If he wakeshe may still be regardedas the dger, but thc playersshould be preparedthat he act not in accor&nce with the tiger may be devised-although it nrieht text. Alternatively a nrcchanical minds, winds or circles). sccnl nlore appropriatcto devisenrechanical If thcrc is only onc playcr hc should play the tiger. Thc duration of thc piecc is not limitcd and it should prcfbrably be perfornrcd on its own. are Thc following notcs on thc six characters not limiting or definirive. They arc intended prinrarily to encourageand assist prospectiveperformersin their roles. However, they do contain phrases the assumptionof that may be usedin performanceas additional nraterial (eg, Amy holding the tiger by

the tail, the circle spinning, ctc). Individual pcrfbrmers nray modify the given details and add new ones if they so desire (eg, a zoologist performer may object to the view that the tiger's growling is instinctual, and might wish to add that the structure of his paws enableshinr to travel soundlesslyover a particular kind of terrain. Howcver, if our zoologist cannot accepttigers sleeping in treeshe should choosea different role-at least until such time as the givcn texts have been discarded). Amy is a person. She worships the tiger. She tags along holding him by the tail. Her mind is occupied with things close by. She comes to no harm in the wind, although it brings her intimations of things far away. However, in high winds she should avoid climbing trees.

The tiger is a beast; he likes to hunt. His 6ce when he sights his prey is a silent explosion. In lean seasons rnust conservehis strength and be on his he guard against manginess. Movement is his language and Amy understands this language. His growling, etc, are merely his instinctual noises. His telecommunications systernis basedon the wind which brings him scents and soundsfrom far away. His hearing and sense smell are very acute. of

The tree is supposedlyinsensate. But it does respond to the stimuli of wind and sun, and is also subject to sickness. It can sustainseveredamage and sdl repair itself. It is a haven for all kinds of life (animals, insects,plants) some of which are dependent on it parasitically. It keepswithin itself a record of its age (seenas concentric circles). It is hard yet pliant. Dead trees may remain standing for centuriesafter their death. In life it expresses circle the in of seasons its fowering, its hlling leaves,their changing colour, the rising sap, etc. Ironically, its secdis borne away on the wind which is a potentially dangerousenemy. Being unaware of the effect of its being, a tree may be beneficial, inimical or neutral in relation to others of its kind (eg, it may be protecting a neighbouring tree from high winds at the same rime as depriving it of vital sunlight). Having no mind of its own, the tree is a constant stimulus to the mind.

Wind is insubstantial: visible and audible only through the objects in its path. image of freedom-blowing when and where it wants, Wind is a persuasive now hot now cold, now hard now soft, now sweet now sour, frequently screaming, wailing, whimpering, groaning, but never suffering, always intact-but crack this image and behind it we find that wind is totally

detemrined throughout its insubstantial being-on the one sidc by the atmospheric and geographical conditions that generateit and on the other by the form, size and substance the obstaclesin its path. Sometimes wind of seemsto vanish completely for days on end, but this is an illusion-he is ever-Present.

The circle is an abstraction; thc characteristicof rnyriads of things, the substance nonc. It is a specialcasein the classof ellipses(the straight line is of another), as the squareis a specialcasein the classofrectangles (again the other extreme is the straight line). The fasterit spinsthe lessit appears when to; its spin reachesinfinite vclocity, the circlc rests. It is a creation of the mind and at the same timc a threat to it. In some inconceivably special situacionthe wind might causethe circle to acquire direction, enrer time, bcconrea wave.

The mind itsclf is ncvcr in danger,only its user. When the mind absorbs the threat of thc circlc, for instance,the owner may experienceheadache. If the owner relinquisheshis mind in order to escape such effects,he is exposing himself to unknown hazards (from which the mind had previously protected him). If the mind is relinquished it lies dormant wairing for a new user. The mind is a noncntity-hard to recognize.

Worksby CorneliusCardew
Octe t t6 r Octe t 1 9 59 S tri n g T rio Mo ve me n t fo r Or chestr a B u n N o . z fo r Or chestr a F e b ru a ry P i e ce s for Piano T wo B o o ks o f S tu d y for Pianists F i r st Mo ve me n t fo r Str ing Quar tet

in Hinrichsen Edition