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P+ VI




P+VI

WATER YAM

2026

P+ VI — Water Yam, 2026, is the sixth deck of P+ (Projects Prospects Possibilities +). Its 69 cards are the event scores of George Brecht’s Water Yam, published by Fluxus in 1963 in an edition designed by George Maciunas. Brecht’s scores were already cards in a box. In P+ they share a game with drawings, images, colours and names.

The dates in the captions are those of the scores; the box is dated 1963. Cards that share a title are numbered (1/2, 2/2).

  1. George Brecht, Card-Piece for Voice, 1959. 
    CARD-PIECE FOR VOICE

1. There are from 1 to 54 performers. Performers are seated side by side, except for the "chairman", a performer who sits facing the others. They rehearse before the performance to develop common vocables of the four types described below.

2. The chairman holds a deck of ordinary playing cards (four complete suits plus Joker and Extra Joker). He tosses each card into the air so that it is free to fall face up or face down, then re-forms the deck and shuffles it, keeping each card in its face-up or face-down direction.

3. He then deals one card at a time to each performer in turn, including himself, until all cards have been dealt.

4. There is a second stack of "phoneme cards", blank cards on each of which a single phoneme from one or more languages familiar to all performers has been written. These are shuffled and dealt, face up, one at a time, to each performer in turn, who keeps them in a stack separate from the playing cards.

5. At a nod from the chairman, each performer takes a playing card from the top of his sub-deck, performs a sound or not, according to the system of cues given below, and discards the card. Unless there is a signal from the chairman to repeat, or stop, the performance, each performer stops at the end of his sub-deck.
    MoMA record
  2. George Brecht, Exhibit Seven (Clock), Summer, 1961. 
    EXHIBIT SEVEN (CLOCK)

• house number

Summer, 1961
    MoMA record
  3. George Brecht, Incidental Music, Summer, 1961. 
    INCIDENTAL MUSIC

Five Piano Pieces,
any number playable successively or simultaneously, in any order and combination, with one another and with other pieces.

1.
The piano seat is tilted on its base and brought to rest against a part of the piano.

2.
Wooden blocks.
A single block is placed inside the piano. A block is placed upon this block, then a third upon the second, and so forth, singly, until at least one block falls from the column.

3.
Photographing the piano situation.

4.
Three dried peas or beans are dropped, one after another, onto the keyboard.

5.
The piano seat is suitable arranged, and the performer seats himself.

Summer, 1961. G. Brecht
    MoMA record
  4. George Brecht, Comb Music (Comb Event), 1959–62. 
    COMB MUSIC (COMB EVENT)

For single or multiple performance.

A comb is held by its spine in one hand, either free or resting on an object.

The thumb or a finger of the other hand is held with its tip against an end prong of the comb, with the edge of the nail overlapping the end of the prong.

The finger is now slowly and uniformly moved so that the prong is inevitably released, and the nail engages the next prong.

This action is repeated until each prong has been used.

Second version: Sounding comb-prong.
Third version: Comb-prong.
Fourth version: Comb.    Fourth version: Prong.

G. Brecht
(1959-62)
    MoMA record
  5. George Brecht, Concert for Orchestra, 1962. 
    CONCERT FOR ORCHESTRA

( exchanging )

Brecht, 1962
    MoMA record
  6. George Brecht, Concerto for Clarinet, 1962. 
    CONCERTO FOR CLARINET

• nearby

G. Brecht
1962
    MoMA record
  7. George Brecht, Flute Solo, 1962. 
    FLUTE SOLO

• disassembling
• assembling

G. Brecht
1962
    MoMA record
  8. George Brecht, Air Conditioning. 
    AIR CONDITIONING

( move through the place )
    MoMA record
  9. George Brecht, Bed Event. 
    BED EVENT

Discover or arrange:
a white bed
a black item on or near it
    MoMA record
  10. George Brecht, Candle-Piece for Radios. 
    CANDLE-PIECE FOR RADIOS

1. There are about one and one-half times as many radios as performers. The radios are placed about the room and turned on at lowest volume. A stack of instruction cards from a shuffled master-deck is dealt, face-up, at each radio.

2. The room lights are turned out. (Birthday) Candles are lighted and given to the performers, each of whom places one candle by each of the instruction card stacks. After doing this, each performer finds himself at a radio. He performs the instructions given on the top card, places the card at the bottom of the deck, and proceeds to another, unoccupied, radio.

3. Each performer, then, finds himself performing a card instruction and going to another radio. He does this until he finds either that a card is unreadable, or that the candle at a radio is out completely. In either event, he turns off that radio, and, when no more radios are available, returns to his seat.
    MoMA record
  11. George Brecht, Chair Event — 1/2 (Christmas-tree ball). 
    CHAIR EVENT

on a white chair
a Christmas-tree ball
flag
can opener
black
and spectral colors
    MoMA record
  12. George Brecht, Chair Event — 2/2 (grater and tape measure). 
    CHAIR EVENT

on a white chair
a grater
tape measure
alphabet
flag
black
and spectral colors
    MoMA record
  13. George Brecht, Direction. 
    DIRECTION

Arrange to observe a sign
indicating direction of travel.

• travel in the indicated direction
• travel in another direction
    MoMA record
  14. George Brecht, Dresser. 
    DRESSER

• mirror above
  drawers below
    MoMA record
  15. George Brecht, Egg. 
    EGG

• at least one egg
    MoMA record
  16. George Brecht, Event. 
    EVENT

pulse    start
pulse    stop
    MoMA record
  17. George Brecht, Five Events. 
    FIVE EVENTS

• eating with
• between two breaths
• sleep
• wet hand
• several words
    MoMA record
  18. George Brecht, Instruction. 
    INSTRUCTION

• Turn on a radio.
  At the first sound, turn it off.
    MoMA record
  19. George Brecht, Intermission. 
    INTERMISSION

1. hair growing arrangement
   (haircut)

2.
    MoMA record
  20. George Brecht, Keyhole. 
    KEYHOLE

through either side
    MoMA record
  21. George Brecht, Ladder. 
    LADDER

• Paint a single straight ladder white
  Paint the bottom rung black.
  Distribute spectral colors on the rungs between
    MoMA record
  22. George Brecht, Mallard Milk. Text: Dick Higgins. 
    MALLARD MILK

Text: Dick Higgins

Counting.
Summer.
Winter.
Summer.

Milkmaids counting.
Spring fall.
Spring winter summer spring.
    MoMA record
  23. George Brecht, Mirror. 
    MIRROR

• reflecting
• reflecting
    MoMA record
  24. George Brecht, No Smoking Event. 
    NO SMOKING EVENT

Arrange to observe a NO SMOKING sign.

• smoking
• no smoking
    MoMA record
  25. George Brecht, Organ Piece, 1962. 
    ORGAN PIECE

• organ

G. Brecht
1962
    MoMA record
  26. George Brecht, Position. 
    POSITION

• an insect nearby
    MoMA record
  27. George Brecht, Realization. 
    REALIZATION

• emotion music
    MoMA record
  28. George Brecht, Sink — 1/2 (toothbrushes and black soap). 
    SINK

• on a white sink
  toothbrushes
  black soap
    MoMA record
  29. George Brecht, Sink — 2/2 (on ( or near ) a white sink). 
    SINK

• on ( or near ) a white sink
    MoMA record
  30. George Brecht, Six Doors. 
    SIX DOORS

• EXIT
• ENTRANCE
• EXIT
  ENTRANCE
•
    MoMA record
  31. George Brecht, Six Exhibits, Summer, 1961. 
    SIX EXHIBITS

• ceiling
• first wall
• second wall
• third wall
• fourth wall
• floor

Summer, 1961
    MoMA record
  32. George Brecht, Solo for Violin, Viola, Cello, or Contrabass, 1962. 
    SOLO FOR
VIOLIN
VIOLA
CELLO
OR
CONTRABASS

• polishing

George Brecht
1962
    MoMA record
  33. George Brecht, Solo for Wind Instrument, 1962. 
    SOLO FOR WIND INSTRUMENT

( putting it down )

G. Brecht
1962
    MoMA record
  34. George Brecht, Spanish Card Piece for Objects, Winter, 1959/60. 
    SPANISH CARD PIECE FOR OBJECTS

From one to twenty-four performers are arranged within view of each other. Each has before him a stopwatch and a set of objects of four types, corresponding to the four suits of Spanish cards: swords, clubs, cups, and coins.

One performer, as dealer, shuffles a deck of Spanish cards (which are numbered 1-12 in each suit), and deals them in pairs to all performers, each performer arranging his pairs, face up, in front of him.

At a sign from the dealer, each performer starts his stopwatch, and, interpreting the rank of the first card in each pair as the number of sound to be made, and the rank of the second card in each pair as the number of consecutive five-second intervals within which that number of sounds is to be freely arranged, acts with an object corresponding to the suit of the first card in each pair upon an object corresponding to the suit of the second card in that pair.

When every performer has used all his pairs of cards, the piece ends.

G. Brecht
Winter, 1959/60
    MoMA record
  35. George Brecht, Stool — 1/3 (striped cane and oranges). 
    STOOL

on a white stool
a black-and-white-striped cane
oranges in a paper bag
    MoMA record
  36. George Brecht, Stool — 2/3 (a cane and a package or bag of). 
    STOOL

on a stool
a cane
and a package or bag of
    MoMA record
  37. George Brecht, Stool — 3/3 (on ( or near ) a stool). 
    STOOL

on ( or near ) a stool
    MoMA record
  38. George Brecht, String Quartet, 1962. 
    STRING QUARTET

• shaking hands

G. Brecht
1962
    MoMA record
  39. George Brecht, Suitcase — 1/3 (black suitcase / white objects). 
    SUITCASE

• black suitcase
• white objects
    MoMA record
  40. George Brecht, Suitcase — 2/3 (from a suitcase). 
    SUITCASE

• from a suitcase.
    MoMA record
  41. George Brecht, Suitcase — 3/3 (suitcase). 
    SUITCASE

• suitcase
    MoMA record
  42. George Brecht, Table — 1/3 (table). 
    TABLE

• table
    MoMA record
  43. George Brecht, Table — 2/3 (on a white table). 
    TABLE

• on a white table
    MoMA record
  44. George Brecht, Table — 3/3 (glasses, a puzzle and smoking). 
    TABLE

• on a white table
  glasses, a puzzle
  and
  ( having to do with smoking )
    MoMA record
  45. George Brecht, Tea Event, Summer, 1961. 
    TEA EVENT

preparing
empty vessel

Summer, 1961
    MoMA record
  46. George Brecht, Three Aqueous Events, Summer, 1961. 
    THREE AQUEOUS EVENTS

• ice
• water
• steam

Summer, 1961
    MoMA record
  47. George Brecht, Three Arrangements. 
    THREE ARRANGEMENTS

• on the shelf
• on a clothes tree
• black object
  white chair
    MoMA record
  48. George Brecht, Three Broom Events. 
    THREE BROOM EVENTS

• broom
• sweeping
• broom sweepings
    MoMA record
  49. George Brecht, Three Chair Events, Spring, 1961. 
    THREE CHAIR EVENTS

• Sitting on a black chair
  Occurrence.

• Yellow chair.
  ( Occurrence. )

• On (or near) a white chair.
  Occurrence.

Spring, 1961
G. Brecht
    MoMA record
  50. George Brecht, Three Dances, Summer, 1961. 
    THREE DANCES

1.
Saliva

2.
Pause.
Urination.
Pause.

3.
Perspiration.

Summer, 1961
G. Brecht
    MoMA record
  51. George Brecht, Three Gap Events, Spring, 1961. 
    THREE GAP EVENTS

• missing-letter sign
• between two sounds
• meeting again

To Ray J.
Spring, 1961
G. Brecht
    MoMA record
  52. George Brecht, Three Lamp Events, Summer, 1961. 
    THREE LAMP EVENTS

• on.
  off.
• lamp
• off. on.

"It is sure to be dark
if you shut your eyes."(J. Ray)

Summer, 1961
    MoMA record
  53. George Brecht, 3 Piano Pieces, 1962. 
    3 PIANO PIECES

• standing
• sitting
• walking

G. Brecht, 1962
    MoMA record
  54. George Brecht, 3 Table and Chair Events. 
    3 TABLE AND CHAIR EVENTS

• newspaper
• game
  plate
  knife
• fork
  spoon
  glass
    MoMA record
  55. George Brecht, Three Telephone Events, Spring, 1961. 
    THREE TELEPHONE EVENTS

• When the telephone rings, it is allowed to continue ringing, until it stops.
• When the telephone rings, the receiver is lifted, then replaced.
• When the telephone rings, it is answered.

Performance note: Each event comprises all occurrences within its duration.

Spring, 1961
    MoMA record
  56. George Brecht, Three Window Events. 
    THREE WINDOW EVENTS

opening a closed window
closing an open window
    MoMA record
  57. George Brecht, Three Yellow Events, Spring, 1961. 
    THREE YELLOW EVENTS

I   • yellow
    • yellow
    • yellow

II  • yellow
    • loud

III • red

to Rrose
Spring, 1961
G. Brecht
    MoMA record
  58. George Brecht, Time-Table Event, Spring, 1961. 
    TIME-TABLE EVENT

to occur in a railway station

A time-table is obtained.

A tabled time indication is interpreted in minutes and seconds ( 7:16 equalling, for example, 7 minutes and 16 seconds).
This determines the duration of the event.

Spring, 1961
G. Brecht
    MoMA record
  59. George Brecht, Time-Table Music, Summer, 1959. 
    TIME-TABLE MUSIC

For performance in a railway station.

The performers enter a railway station and obtain time-tables.

They stand or seat themselves so as to be visible to each other, and, when ready, start their stopwatches simultaneously.

Each performer interprets the tabled time indications in terms of minutes and seconds (e.g. 7:16 = 7 minutes and 16 seconds). He selects one time by chance to determine the total duration of his performing. This done, he selects one row or column, and makes a sound at all points where tabled times within that row or column fall within the total duration of his performance.

George Brecht
Summer, 1959
    MoMA record
  60. George Brecht, Two Approximations. 
    TWO APPROXIMATIONS

(

obituary

)
    MoMA record
  61. George Brecht, Two Clocks. 
    TWO CLOCKS

• clothes hooks
• bird flight
    MoMA record
  62. George Brecht, Two Definitions. 
    TWO DEFINITIONS

• 1. Something intended or supposed to represent or indicate another thing, fact, event, feeling, etc.; a sign. A portent. 2. A characteristic mark or indication; a symbol. 3. Something given or shown as a symbol or guarantee of authority or right; a sign of authenticity, power, good faith, etc. 4. A memorial by which the affection of another is to be kept in mind; a memento; souvenir. 5. A medium of exchange issued at a nominal or face value in excess of its commodity value. 6. Formerly, in some churches, a piece of metal given beforehand as a warrant or voucher to each person in the congregation who is permitted to partake of the Lord’s Supper.

• ( a cup and saucer )
    MoMA record
  63. George Brecht, Two Durations. 
    TWO DURATIONS

• red
• green
    MoMA record
  64. George Brecht, Two Elimination Events, Summer, 1961. 
    TWO ELIMINATION EVENTS

empty vessel

empty vessel

Summer, 1961
    MoMA record
  65. George Brecht, Two Exercises, Fall, 1961. 
    TWO EXERCISES

Consider an object. Call what is not the object "other."

EXERCISE: Add to the object, from the "other," another object, to form a new object and a new "other."
Repeat until there is no more "other."

EXERCISE: Take a part from the object and add it to the "other," to form a new object and a new "other."
Repeat until there is no more object.

Fall, 1961
    MoMA record
  66. George Brecht, 2 Umbrellas. 
    2 UMBRELLAS

• umbrella
• umbrella
    MoMA record
  67. George Brecht, Two Vehicle Events, Summer, 1961. 
    TWO VEHICLE EVENTS

• start
• stop

Summer, 1961
    MoMA record
  68. George Brecht, Wheel. 
    WHEEL

• Paint the hub white.
  Paint the felly black.
  Distribute spectral colors on the spokes.
    MoMA record
  69. George Brecht, Word Event, Spring, 1961. 
    WORD EVENT

• EXIT

G. Brecht
Spring, 1961
    MoMA record
George Brecht, Water Yam, 1963. Design and production: George Maciunas. Source exemplar: MoMA, object 1988.2008.1–70. Collection record. P+ VI — Water Yam, 2026.