Chance Encounters with John Cage: A CELEBRATION OF JACKSON MAC LOW

Poets Anne Tardos, Charles Bernstein, and Craig Dworkin discuss Cage and Mac Low, their mutual influences, and read from Mac Low's work.

For this Poetry Month edition of CHANCE ENCOUNTERS WITH JOHN CAGE, we look at the work of poet Jackson Mac Low and his relationship with John Cage. Mac Low had attended a concert of Cage's Sonatas and Interludes for Prepared Piano back in 1948, so had already been familiar with his work, but then studied with Cage from 1956 –1960, participating in his "Experimental Composition" classes at the New School. Cage's "chance procedures," as well as Cage's innovations in presenting theater and text, had a profound effect on Mac Low's poetry and performance, which in turn equally influenced Cage.

We'll chat about Mac Low and Cage, then read from some of the poetry sent to Cage by Mac Low (from John Cage's Personal Library at the John Cage Trust). The poets will be joined by Jeffrey Lependorf, the John Cage Trust's Executive Director.

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Charles Bernstein (above right) is the author, most recently, of The Kinds of Poetry I Want: Essays and Comedies (University of Chicago Press, 2024), Topsy-Turvy (Chicago, 2021) and Pitch of Poetry (Chicago, 2016).

Craig Dworkin (above left)is the author, most recently, of Helicography (Punctum, 2021) and The Sound of Thinking: A Listener's Companion to Conceptual Music (Chicago, 2026).

Anne Tardos (above center) has long been a singluar figure in American poetry, author of fourteen books, translated widely, anthologized internationally, and a crucial editor of the posthumous work of Jackson Mac Low. Among her recent books of poetry are How Water Works (2026), The Always Already Absent Present (2025), The Exploding Nothingness of Never Define (2020), all from BlazeVox Books.