Terrence Mitchell "Terry" Riley (born June 24, 1935) is an American composer and performing musician best known as a pioneer of the minimalist school of composition. Influenced by

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

and Indian classical music, his music became notable for its innovative use of

repetition Repetition may refer to: * Repetition (rhetorical device), repeating a word within a short space of words *Repetition (bodybuilding), a single cycle of lifting and lowering a weight in strength training *Working title for the 1985 slasher film '' ...

, tape music techniques, and delay systems. His best known works are the 1964 composition '' In C'' and the 1969 LP '' A Rainbow in Curved Air'', both considered landmarks of minimalism and important influences on experimental music, rock, and contemporary

electronic music Electronic music is a genre of music that employs electronic musical instruments, digital instruments, or circuitry-based music technology in its creation. It includes both music made using electronic and electromechanical means ( electro ...

. Raised in California, Riley began studying composition and performing solo piano in the 1950s. He befriended and collaborated with composer La Monte Young, and later became involved with the San Francisco Tape Music Center. A three-record deal with CBS in the late 1960s, resulting in an LP recording of ''In C'' (1968) and ''A Rainbow in Curved Air'' (1969), brought his work to wider audiences. In 1970, he began intensive studies under Hindustani singer Pandit Pran Nath, whom he often accompanied in performance. He has collaborated frequently throughout his career, most extensively with chamber ensemble the Kronos Quartet and his son, guitarist Gyan Riley.

Life

Born in Colfax, California, in 1935, Riley began performing as a solo pianist during the 1950s. During that decade, he studied composition at

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different ...

, the San Francisco Conservatory, and

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant un ...

, studying with

Seymour Shifrin Seymour Shifrin (28 February 1926 – 26 September 1979) was an American composer. He was described by ''Time Magazine'' as "one of the most significant composers of his generation." Shifrin's ''Satires of Circumstance'' (1964, text by Thomas Har ...

and Robert Erickson. He befriended composer La Monte Young, whose earliest minimalist compositions using sustained tones were an influence; together, Young and Riley performed Riley's improvisatory composition ''Concert for Two Pianists and Tape Recorders'' in 1959–60. Riley later became involved in the experimental San Francisco Tape Music Center, working with Morton Subotnick,

Steve Reich Stephen Michael Reich ( ; born October 3, 1936) is an American composer known for his contribution to the development of minimal music in the mid to late 1960s. Reich's work is marked by its use of repetitive figures, slow harmonic rhythm, ...

Pauline Oliveros Pauline Oliveros (May 30, 1932 – November 24, 2016) was an American composer, accordionist and a central figure in the development of post-war experimental and electronic music. She was a founding member of the San Francisco Tape Music Center ...

, and

Ramon Sender Ramón Sender Barayón (born October 29, 1934) is a composer, visual artist and writer. He was the co-founder with Morton Subotnick of the San Francisco Tape Music Center in 1962. He is the son of Spanish writer Ramón J. Sender. Education ...

. Throughout the 1960s he also traveled frequently in Europe, taking in musical influences and supporting himself by playing in piano bars. He also performed briefly with the

Theatre of Eternal Music The Theatre of Eternal Music (later sometimes called The Dream Syndicate) was an avant-garde musical group formed by La Monte Young in New York City in 1962. The core of the group consisted of Young (voice, saxophone), Tony Conrad (violin), ...

in New York in 1965-1966. His most influential teacher was Pandit Pran Nath (1918–1996), a master of Indian classical voice who also taught La Monte Young, Marian Zazeela, and Michael Harrison. Riley made numerous trips to India over the course of their association to study and accompany him on

tabla A tabla, bn, তবলা, prs, طبلا, gu, તબલા, hi, तबला, kn, ತಬಲಾ, ml, തബല, mr, तबला, ne, तबला, or, ତବଲା, ps, طبله, pa, ਤਬਲਾ, ta, தபலா, te, తబల� ...

, tambura, and voice. In 1971 he joined the

Mills College Mills College at Northeastern University is a private college in Oakland, California and part of Northeastern University's global university system. Mills College was founded as the Young Ladies Seminary in 1852 in Benicia, California; it w ...

faculty to teach Indian classical music. Riley also cites

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading f ...

and "the really great

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small nu ...

groups of John Coltrane and

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

Charles Mingus Charles Mingus Jr. (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz upright bassist, pianist, composer, bandleader, and author. A major proponent of collective improvisation, he is considered to be one of the greatest jazz musicians an ...

Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block ch ...

, and Gil Evans" as influences on his work. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Music at

Chapman University Chapman University is a private research university in Orange, California. It encompasses ten schools and colleges, including Fowler School of Engineering, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, Fowler School of Law, and Schmid College of Sci ...

in 2007. Riley began his long-lasting association with the Kronos Quartet when he met their founder David Harrington while at Mills. Over the course of his career, Riley composed 13

string quartet The term string quartet can refer to either a type of musical composition or a group of four people who play them. Many composers from the mid-18th century onwards wrote string quartets. The associated musical ensemble consists of two violinist ...

s for the ensemble, in addition to other works. He wrote his first orchestral piece, ''Jade Palace'', in 1991, and has continued to pursue that avenue, with several commissioned orchestral compositions following. He is also currently performing and teaching both as an Indian

raga A ''raga'' or ''raag'' (; also ''raaga'' or ''ragam''; ) is a melodic framework for improvisation in Indian classical music akin to a melodic mode. The ''rāga'' is a unique and central feature of the classical Indian music tradition, and as ...

vocalist and as a solo pianist. Riley continues to perform live, and was part of the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in May 2011. Terry Riley 85

Techniques

Riley's music is usually based on improvising through a series of modal figures of different lengths. Works such as '' In C'' (1964) and the ''Keyboard Studies'' (1964–1966) demonstrate this technique. The first performance of ''In C'' was given by

, Jon Gibson,

and Morton Subotnick. Its form was an innovation: The piece consists of 53 separate modules of roughly one measure apiece, each containing a different musical pattern but each, as the title implies, in the key of C. One performer beats a steady pulse of ''C''s on the piano to keep tempo. The others, in any number and on any instrument, perform these musical modules following a few loose guidelines, with the different musical modules interlocking in various ways as time goes on. In the 1950s Riley was already working with tape loops, a technology still in its infancy at the time; he would later, with the help of a sound engineer, create what he called a "time-lag accumulator". He has continued manipulating tapes to musical effect, in the studio and in live performances throughout his career. An early tape loop piece titled ''Music for the Gift'' (1963) featured the trumpet playing of

Chet Baker Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool". Baker earned much attention and ...

. It was during Riley's time in Paris, while composing this piece, that he conceived of and created the time-lag accumulator technique. He has composed using just intonation as well as microtones.Holmes, Thomas B. ''Electronic and Experimental Music'', Taylor & Francis (2008) p. 132, 362 In New York City in the mid-1960s he played with his longtime friend La Monte Young, as well as with

John Cale John Davies Cale (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, singer, songwriter and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various sty ...

and tabla player Angus MacLise, who were founding members of The Velvet Underground. Riley is credited as inspiring Cale's keyboard part on Lou Reed's composition " All Tomorrow's Parties", which was sung by German actress Nico and included on the album ''

The Velvet Underground and Nico ''The Velvet Underground & Nico'' is the debut album by the American rock band the Velvet Underground and German singer Nico, released in March 1967 through Verve Records. It was recorded in 1966 while the band were featured on Andy Warhol's Ex ...

'', recorded in 1966. Riley's famous overdubbed electronic album '' A Rainbow in Curved Air'' (recorded 1968, released 1969) inspired many later developments in electronic music. These include

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s. Towns ...

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

parts on

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are considered ...

's " Won't Get Fooled Again" and " Baba O'Riley", the latter named in tribute to Riley as well as to Meher Baba. Charles Hazlewood, in his BBC documentary on Minimalism (Part 1) suggests that the album ' Tubular Bells' by Mike Oldfield was also inspired by Riley's example. Riley's collaborators have included the Rova Saxophone Quartet,

, the ARTE Quartett, and, as mentioned, the Kronos Quartet. His 1995 ''Lisbon Concert'' recording features him in a solo piano format, improvising on his own works. In the liner notes Riley cites Art Tatum, Bud Powell and

as his piano "heroes", illustrating the importance of jazz to his conceptions.

Personal life

He has three children: one daughter, Colleen, and two sons, Gyan, who is a guitarist, and Shahn. He was married to Ann Riley until her death in 2015.

Discography

*1963: ''Music for The Gift'' (Organ of Corti 1, 1963) *1965: ''Reed Streams'', Mass Art Inc. M-131 *1967: ''You're No Good'', recorded in 1967 but unreleased until 2000 (Cortical Foundation / Organ of Corti, 2000) *1968: ''Germ'', with Gérard Frémy & Martine Joste (Spalax CD 14542, 1998). Includes a Pierre Mariétan track. *1968: '' In C'', Columbia MS7178 *1969: '' A Rainbow in Curved Air'', CBS 64564 *1971: ''

Church of Anthrax ''Church of Anthrax'' is a collaborative studio album by musicians John Cale and Terry Riley. It was released in February 1971 by record label CBS, nearly a year after the material was recorded. It followed Riley's success with 1969's ''A Rainbo ...

'', with

(CBS) *1972: ''Happy Ending'' (soundtrack to

Joël Santoni Joël Santoni (5 November 1943 – 18 April 2018) was a French film director and screenwriter.

's film ), Warner Bros. Records France 46125; & Lifespan'', for solo electric organ; two soundtracks (2007 reissue) *1972: '' Persian Surgery Dervishes'', Shanti 83502 *1975: (''Lifespan'' film soundtrack), Philips France 9120 037 *1975: ''Descending Moonshine Dervishes'', Kuckuck Records *1980: '' Shri Camel'', CBS Masterworks M3519, for solo electronic organ tuned in just intonation and modified by digital delay *1983: ''Songs for the Ten Voices of the Two Prophets'', for two Prophet 5 synthesisers, Kuckuck Records *1984: '' Terry Riley: Cadenza on the Night Plain'', a collaboration with the Kronos Quartet *1984: ''Terry Riley and Krishna Bhatt: Terry Riley and Krishna Bhatt Duo'', a collaboration with

Krishna Bhatt Krishna Mohan Bhatt (born 1949) is a sitar player, teacher and scholar from Jaipur, India. Background He comes from a family of musicians in Jaipur. His father, the late Shashi Mohan Bhatt, a sitarist of great repute and a professor at the Un ...

*1985: ''No Man's Land'' *1986: ''The Harp of New Albion'', for piano tuned in just intonation *1987: '' Chanting the Light of Foresight'', with Rova Saxophone Quartet in just intonation *1989: '' Salome Dances for Peace'', for the Kronos Quartet *1995: ''In C – 25th Anniversary Concert'', version featuring Riley as one of four vocalists, recorded live January 14, 1990, San Francisco, New Albion Records *1995: ''Lisbon Concert'', solo piano concert, recorded live July 16, 1995 Festival dos Capuchos, Teatro São Luis, Lisbon, Portugal., New Albion Records *1997: '' Lazy Afternoon Among the Crocodiles'', experimental album recorded with contrabassist

Stefano Scodanibbio Stefano Scodanibbio (18 June 1956 – 8 January 2012) was an Italian musician who reached international prominence as a double bassist and composer. Biography Scodanibbio was born in Macerata. He studied double bass with Fernando Grillo and ...

. *1998: Piano Music of John Adams and Terry Riley, performed by Gloria Cheng *1999: The Book of Abbeyozzud *2001: '' Moscow Conservatory Solo Piano Concert'', recording of a live performance on 18 April 2000 *2001: '' Terry Riley: Requiem for Adam'', with Riley's tribute to the son of David Harrington performed by the Kronos quartet, and a solo piano improvisation by Riley *2002: ''

Sun Rings ''Sun Rings'' is a Kronos Quartet project comprising pre-recorded sounds from space, images from space, music for string quartet and chorus composed by Terry Riley, and visuals by Willie Williams. It premiered 26 October 2002 at the Hancher Audit ...

'' for the Kronos Quartet *2002: ''Atlantis Nath'', hand-numbered signed edition of 1000 copies *2004: '' The Cusp of Magic'', with the Kronos Quartet, composed for his seventieth birthday, an ode to the rite of Midsummer Eve *2008: ''Banana Humberto'', piano concerto with Paul Dresher Ensemble *2008: ''The Last Camel in Paris'', live solo electric organ performance in Paris, 1978 *2010: ''Two Early Works'', the first-ever recordings of two of Riley's early compositions, performed by the Calder Quartet *2012: ''Aleph'' *2015: ''G Song'', Kronos Quartet, in honor of his eightieth birthday *2019: ''The Lion's Throne'', with singer Amelia Cuni, recorded live (Sri Moonshine Music, SMM008)

Filmography

*1970 – ''Corridor''. Film by Standish Lawder. *1975 – ''Lifespan''. Film by Alexander Whitelaw feat. Klaus Kinski, Tina Aumont and Hiram Keller. Soundtrack released as ''Le secret de la vie'' in France, on Philips LP 9120 037 (1975). *1976 – ''Crossroads''. Film by Bruce Conner. *1976 – ''Music with Roots in the Aether: Opera for Television''. Tape 6: Terry Riley. Produced and directed by Robert Ashley. New York, New York: Lovely Music. *1986 – ''In Between the Notes...a Portrait of Pandit Pran Nath, Master Indian Musician''. Produced by Other Minds, directed by William Farley. *1995 – ''Musical Outsiders: An American Legacy – Harry Partch, Lou Harrison, and Terry Riley''. Directed by Michael Blackwood. *2008 – "A Rainbow in Curved Air" features in the in-game soundtrack of '' Grand Theft Auto IV''. It can be found when listening to the fictional radio station, "The Journey". *2017 – '' Hochelaga, Land of Souls''. Film by François Girard.

References

External links

*

* * * *

(audio and video) *Davidson, Robert.
Short Biography of Terry Riley
" 1999.
Elision Fields
Riley's management and CD label
A Concert in Honor of Terry Riley on his 50th Birthday
featuring the Kronos Quartet .

featuring tracks from ''The Book of Abbeyozzud'' and ''The Light of Foresight'' (with Rova)
Art of the States: Terry Riley
''In C'' (1964) *Golden, Barbara. "Conversation with Terry Riley.

(April 2010). Montréal: CEC. *Leopizzi, Marco.
Terry Riley — Il guru del minimalismo
" Interview from 1 June 2008. Musicaround.net. * (includes video)
Interview with Terry Riley
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Riley, Terry * American male classical composers American classical composers 21st-century classical composers Living people Minimalist composers Microtonal composers 1935 births Postmodern composers 20th-century classical composers San Francisco State University alumni Contemporary classical music performers People from Placer County, California BYG Actuel artists Mills College faculty Composers for piano Pupils of Robert Erickson Pupils of Pran Nath (musician) 21st-century American composers 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians 21st-century American male musicians