JOHN CAGE (1912-1992) was an American composer whose inventive compositions and unorthodox ideas profoundly influenced twentieth-century music. He was an early proponent of aleatoric music (music where some elements are left to chance), used instruments in nonstandard ways, and was an electronic music pioneer. LAURA KUHN (Millbrook, NY) is the John Cage Professor of Performance Art at Bard College and director of the John Cage Trust.