1967
In her September 30, 1967, article for the Staten Island Advance, Maxine Sitts captures the vivid scene of the 5th Annual New York Avant-Garde Festival, which famously took place aboard the John F. Kennedy ferry boat. Organized by Charlotte Moorman, the event—dubbed a "floating arts festival"—saw thousands of participants, described by Sitts as "hippies" and artists, jamming the ferry for a 24-hour Happening.
Max Neuhaus was a key contributor to this event, marking another step in his transition from traditional percussionist to environmental sound artist:
Neuhaus performed Fontana Mix-Feed, a realization of John Cage’s work that utilized electronic feedback and contact microphones.
The festival turned the ferry's architecture into a stage where experimental music competed with the ambient sounds of the harbor. This environment allowed Neuhaus to experiment with sound as a spatial volume rather than a temporal performance.
Public Reception: Sitts’ report highlights the "crush" of the crowd (estimated at over 50,000 including commuters), reflecting the era's friction between high-art experimentation and the general public