World's Longest Song Changes Chords

World’s Longest Song Changes Chords

Audience members gathered both inside and outside a church in Halberstadt, Germany to hear an organ change notes.

This past weekend saw the first chord change in Composer John Cage’s piece Organ²/ASLSP (As Slow As Possible) in 7 years. The piece has been performed continually since 2001 at the St Burchardi Church and, if we as a species exist on the planet, the piece will finish in 2640. (That’s 639 years, but who’s counting?) Attendance was limited inside the church because of the pandemic, but folks gathered to hear the big change.

The next note change is scheduled for February, 2022.

Even if you find experimental music to be dry and cold, you must admit this has got to be one of the most optimistic pieces of music ever written, because, let’s face it, anything that takes it for granted that human beings will still be around past this Thursday is Suzy Sunshine waltzing through the daises, if you ask us.