What is silence?

"You can be in a crowded space and still enjoy silence: It comes from your heart and not from the absence of talk"

(Thich Nhat Hanh)

What is silence according to John Cage?

Much has been written about 4'33", his composition from the Fifties:

The most prevalent interpretations are:

1. Silence does not exist.

One simply should listen and open one's ears.

2. Silence is a means to separate tones and chords, in order to avoid melodic interpretations to the relationships between and among sounds.

However, according to David Tudor, 4’33” was for Cage a simple and quite natural "extension" [...].

(Source: J. Cage Complete Works)

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More

• 4'33'' by John Cage (Wikipedia)

• 4'33'' App

• Film trailer "In pursuit of silence"

• Book by Thich Nhat Hanh: "Silence, The Power of Quiet in a World Full of Noise"