“Music machines? Since the early 60’s Joe has created a great array of sound producing objects in an equally varied range of situations. Are they toys, sculpture, games, prepared or extended musical instruments (out of Cage’s prepared pianos)? Or some of all of these? Joe takes small motors powered by batteries, sometimes with electricity and more recently with solar cells. To each a rubber band, a ping pong ball or a strip of leather is attached to act as a beater. The motors are suspended by the wires from the power source over a xylophone, guitar, drum, violin, or beside bells, tambourines, or any number of other instruments. When the power source is activated the piece plays by itself, and as the motors swing the music changes. The sound is extraordinary, very down to earth, simple and natural, but also magical. It is humorous, contemplative and with surprises.”
a documentation of 30 years’ worth of musical sculptures and performances, with an introduction by René Block and texts by Geoffrey Hendricks and Henning Christiansen, illustrated with many b/w photographs and reproduced documents, text in English and German, soft cover, 24 x 17 cm, 64 not numbered pages, Berlin 1990
ISBN: 3-89357-018-7 (DAAD)
ISBN: 3-88537-121-9 (Rainer salon noirVerlag)
