Fluxus Performance Workbook. Image for blog post "What is and Event Score".

What is a Fluxus Event Score?

The Fluxus Performance Workbook, edited by Ken Friedman, Owen Smith, and Lauren Sawchyn.

Readers of this Fluxus Blog might recall a post I made back in 2018, Instant Fluxfest Kit: The Fluxus Performance Workbook, edited by Ken Friedman and Owen Smith. The Fluxus Performance Workbook consists of a collection of Fluxus Event Scores. But, what exactly is an event score?

Event scores are essential a type of Intermedia, in this case the intersecting media are music performance scores and theatrical performance scripts. Like music, and event score has instructions for performers to enact on stage. Like theatre, the performances themselves are generally actions to be performed, rather than notes to be played. Keeping in mind always, that Fluxus is infinitely flexible, and descriptions such as this can only be read as generalizations to aid in understanding and identification.

Types of Event Scores

There are three basic forms that event scores usually take:

  1. The first and most common form of event score is a typically brief (often just a few words) instruction for a performer to perform, usually but not always, in front of an audience. Examples of this are Alison Knowles “Make a Salad“, which consists only of the title instruction, and Fluxus Television by Ken Friedman, consisting of the instruction; “Paint shows and images on the glass screens of television sets“. One of my (Allan Revich) scores is a Pebble Piece with two parts. Part One is “Find a pebble and toss it into the future”. Part Two is “Go to the future and find a pebble. Bring it back to the present.”
    These event scores are brief, slightly humorous, yet they are also enigmatic and though provoking.
  2. The next type of event score is the “thought” score. These score are meant to be performed primarily in the performer’s mind. Some of the best examples of this type of event score are in the book, Grapefruit, by Yoko Ono. One of my pieces reads, “BE THE GOD YOU ALWAYS DREAMED OF”.
  3. The third type of event score associated with Fluxus is the durational piece. While most Fluxus scores are intended to be brief and simple, some Fluxus artists have created scores that can last for several hours (or even days!). Many of the durational scores will still have only a brief instruction though. An example is Direction by George Brecht (1961); Arrange to observe a sign indicating direction of travel. Travel in the indicated direction. Travel in another direction.