German organ performance to continue until 2640

German organ performance to continue until 2640

Organ builder Johannes Huefken works on the John Cage organ project at his workshop in Halberstadt. (AP photos)

A small organ in eastern Germany is the headliner of the world’s slowest concert. It has been playing the same piece of music by composer John Cage at a glacial pace for nearly 25 years.

A rare chord change yesterday — from seven notes to eight once an A4 pipe is added —represented the completion of about 4 percent of the 639-year endeavor of the John Cage Organ Project Halberstadt.

While the project commenced in 2000, the performance began Sept. 5, 2001 — Cage’s 89th birthday — with a silent pause that lasted until Feb. 5, 2003, when the first chords could actually be heard inside the medieval Burchardi Church in Halberstadt, Germany.