Silence may be golden this Christmas, with an internet campaign lobbying to make experimental composer John Cage's noteless 4'33" Britain's seasonal number one this year.
Dubbed Cage Against the Machine, the Facebook campaign with some 29,000 supporters so far is modelled on a similar movement last Christmas that helped Rage Against the Machine to the top of the UK singles charts.
That prevented hot favourite Joe McElderry, who had won the 2009 edition of the popular X-Factor television series, from grabbing the coveted position, and ended the show's recent domination of Christmas charts.
Cage's 4'33'' is described as a three-movement composition for any instrument or combination of instruments, and the score tells performers not to play at all. Cage said the point was to listen to the other sounds that fill the silence.
"They better not fade the ending out like they usually do on the radio," said one Facebook supporter online.
Reuters