Harold Budd
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Harold Montgomory Budd (May 24, 1936December 8, 2020) was an American composer and poet. Born in Los Angeles and raised in the
Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily in ...
, he became a respected composer in the
minimalist In visual arts, music and other media, minimalism is an art movement that began in post–World War II in Western art, most strongly with American visual arts in the 1960s and early 1970s. Prominent artists associated with minimalism include Don ...
and
avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
scene of
Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most po ...
in the late 1960s, and later became better known for his work with figures such as
Brian Eno Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop an ...
and
Robin Guthrie Robin Andrew Guthrie (born 4 January 1962) is a Scottish musician, songwriter, composer, record producer and audio engineer, best known as the co-founder of the alternative rock band Cocteau Twins. During his career Guthrie has performed ...
. Budd developed what he called a "soft pedal" technique for playing piano, with use of slow playing and prominent
sustain In sound and music, an envelope describes how a sound changes over time. It may relate to elements such as amplitude (volume), frequencies (with the use of filters) or pitch. For example, a piano key, when struck and held, creates a near-immedi ...
.


Early life

Budd was born in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
,
California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, and spent his childhood in
Victorville, California Victorville is a city in Victor Valley in San Bernardino County, California. Its population as of the 2020 census was 134,810. History In 1858, Aaron G. Lane came to what is now known as Victorville and founded a waystation called "Lane's Cro ...
on the southwestern edge of the
Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily in ...
. Harold was only 13 when his father died, and soon his family fell out of their comfortable middle class existence. He was sent up to the desert to live with friends and relatives as often as possible, but the reality in Los Angeles was growing up in a tough neighborhood, and as the oldest son, being the man of the house. During this time Black culture had an enormous impact on Harold, especially jazz music and bebop, and he could be found in his teenage years playing drums in bars and jazz clubs in South Central Los Angeles. Drafted into the army, he joined the regimental band where he played drums. Jazz saxophonist
Albert Ayler Albert Ayler (; July 13, 1936 – November 25, 1970) was an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist, singer and composer. After early experience playing R&B and bebop, Ayler began recording music during the free jazz era of the 1960s. Howev ...
was drafted at the same time and was also a member of the band. Budd joined him in gigs around the
Monterey Monterey (; es, Monterrey; Ohlone: ) is a city located in Monterey County on the southern edge of Monterey Bay on the U.S. state of California's Central Coast. Founded on June 3, 1770, it functioned as the capital of Alta California under both ...
area. Budd's experience of the army made him determined to get an education.


Education, academic career and early works

Budd attended high school at
Los Angeles High School Los Angeles High School is the oldest Public education#United States, public high school in the Southern California, Southern California Region and in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Its colors are royal blue and white and the teams are ...
, but did not graduate. He worked as "everything from cowboy to mailman," including a stint at
Douglas Aircraft The Douglas Aircraft Company was an American aerospace manufacturer based in Southern California. It was founded in 1921 by Donald Wills Douglas Sr. and later merged with McDonnell Aircraft in 1967 to form McDonnell Douglas; it then operated as ...
. At the age of 21, he left Douglas, and briefly moved to San Francisco. While there, he worked at
Gump's Gump's is a luxury American home furnishings and home décor retailer, founded in 1861 in San Francisco, California. The company was acquired by the Chachas family in June 2019 and announced that it would be opening a San Francisco location for th ...
. Unable to continue living in San Francisco, Budd returned to Los Angeles, and enrolled in an architecture course at
Los Angeles City College Los Angeles City College (LACC) is a public community college in East Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. A part of the Los Angeles Community College District, it is located on Vermont Avenue south of Santa Monica Boulevard on the former campus ...
. He switched to a course in harmony and renaissance counterpoint and his musical talent was spotted by a teacher who encouraged him to compose. He began to attend performances by artists like
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 ...
and
Pharoah Sanders Pharoah Sanders (born Ferrell Lee Sanders; October 13, 1940 – September 24, 2022) was an American jazz saxophonist. Known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on the saxophone, as well as his use of "sheets of sound", San ...
. “From that moment on,” he recalls, “I had an insatiable appetite. Harmony, counterpoint, Renaissance music: I really heard it for the first time.” Budd's career as a composer began in 1962. In the following years, he gained a notable reputation in the local avant-garde community. Budd studied music at
California State University, Northridge California State University, Northridge (CSUN or Cal State Northridge) is a public university in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. With a total enrollment of 38,551 students (as of Fall 2021), it has the second largest un ...
, under Gerald Strang (a protege of Arnold Schoenberg) and
Aurelio de la Vega Aurelio de la Vega (November 28, 1925 – February 12, 2022) was a Cuban-American composer, lecturer, essayist, and poet. He wrote numerous works in many forms and media and, from the early 1960s, was an active force on the United States musical ...
. He graduated from CSUN, and then went on full scholarship to the University of Southern California, under the tutelage of
Ingolf Dahl Ingolf Dahl (June 9, 1912 – August 6, 1970) was a German-born American composer, pianist, conductor, and educator. Biography Dahl was born Walter Ingolf Marcus in Hamburg, Germany, to a German Jewish father, attorney Paul Marcus, and his Swed ...
, graduating in 1966. Budd's work of this period was primarily minimalist
drone music Drone music, drone-based music, or simply drone, is a minimalist genre that emphasizes the use of sustained sounds, notes, or tone clusters – called drones. It is typically characterized by lengthy audio programs with relatively slight harmon ...
influenced by
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 fi ...
and
Morton Feldman Morton Feldman (January 12, 1926 – September 3, 1987) was an American composer. A major figure in 20th-century classical music, Feldman was a pioneer of indeterminate music, a development associated with the experimental New York School ...
, as well as the abstract expressionist painter
Mark Rothko Mark Rothko (), born Markus Yakovlevich Rothkowitz (russian: Ма́ркус Я́ковлевич Ротко́вич, link=no, lv, Markuss Rotkovičs, link=no; name not Anglicized until 1940; September 25, 1903 – February 25, 1970), was a Latv ...
, with whom he corresponded. After completing his degree in composition in 1969, Budd took up a teaching position at the California Institute for the Arts. In 1970, he released his first piece, ''The Oak of the Golden Dreams'', which he recorded with an early model Buchla modular synthesizer at the institute. At the encourage of Brian Eno and Marianne Brown, he left CalArts for London. Soon afterwards, Budd gave up composition, disgusted by the "academic pyrotechnics" of the avant-garde community. In London, he found his composing community of Eno,
Gavin Bryars Richard Gavin Bryars (; born 16 January 1943) is an English composer and double bassist. He has worked in jazz, free improvisation, minimalism, historicism, avant-garde, and experimental music. Early life and career Born on 16 January 1943 in ...
,
Michael Nyman Michael Laurence Nyman, Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 23 March 1944) is an English composer, pianist, libretto, librettist, musicologist, and filmmaker. He is known for numerous film soundtrack, scores (many written during his length ...
, and the members of the
Cocteau Twins Cocteau Twins was a Scottish rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth by Robin Guthrie (guitars, drum machine) and Will Heggie (bass), adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981 and replacing Heggie with multi-instrum ...
. In 2004, Budd and his wife moved to Monument House in Joshua Tree.


Composer and recording artist

In 1972, while still retaining his teaching career at the California Institute for the Arts, he resurfaced as a composer. Spanning from 1972 to 1975, he created four individual works under the collective title ''The Pavilion of Dreams''. The style of these works was an unusual blend of popular jazz and the avant-garde. His 1972 work ''Madrigals of the Rose Angel'' was sent to English composer
Gavin Bryars Richard Gavin Bryars (; born 16 January 1943) is an English composer and double bassist. He has worked in jazz, free improvisation, minimalism, historicism, avant-garde, and experimental music. Early life and career Born on 16 January 1943 in ...
who passed it on to
Brian Eno Brian Peter George St John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno (; born Brian Peter George Eno, 15 May 1948) is a British musician, composer, record producer and visual artist best known for his contributions to ambient music and work in rock, pop an ...
. Eno contacted Budd and brought him to London to record for his
Obscure Records Obscure Records was a U.K. record label which existed from 1975 to 1978. It was created and curated by Brian Eno. Ten albums were issued in the series. Most have detailed liner notes on their back covers, analyzing the compositions and providi ...
label. Budd resigned from the institute in 1976 and began recording his new compositions, produced by Eno. Two years later, Harold Budd's debut album, ''
The Pavilion of Dreams ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...
'' (1978), was released. The first performance of the piece was at a Franciscan church in California conducted by
Daniel Lentz Daniel Lentz (born March 10, 1942, Latrobe, Pennsylvania, United States) is an American classical electronic music composer and artist who specializes in sculptured acrylic illuminated manuscripts. Biography Lentz achieved notability as a musici ...
." The work with Eno led Budd to shift his focus to studio-led projects, characterised by use of synthesisers and electronic treatments, often collaborating with other musicians. Budd developed a style of piano playing he deemed "soft pedal," which can be described as slow and sustained. While he is often placed in the Ambient category, he emphatically declared that he was not an Ambient artist, and felt that he got "kidnapped" into the category. His two collaborations with Eno, 1980's '' The Plateaux of Mirror'' and 1984's '' The Pearl'', established his trademark atmospheric piano style. On '' Lovely Thunder'', he introduced subtle electronic textures. His thematic 2000 release ''
The Room ''The Room'' is a 2003 American drama film written, produced, executive produced and directed by Tommy Wiseau, who stars in the film alongside Juliette Danielle and Greg Sestero. The film centers on a melodramatic love triangle between amiable ...
'' saw a return to a more minimalist approach. In 2003,
Daniel Lanois Daniel Roland Lanois ( , ; born September 19, 1951) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has produced albums by artists including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson, Emmylou Harris, Willie ...
, a producer for U2 and
Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
, and occasional collaborator with Brian Eno, recorded an impromptu performance of Budd playing the piano in his Los Angeles living room, unaware; it was released in 2005 as the album ''La Bella Vista''. He had a long-running collaboration with guitarist
Robin Guthrie Robin Andrew Guthrie (born 4 January 1962) is a Scottish musician, songwriter, composer, record producer and audio engineer, best known as the co-founder of the alternative rock band Cocteau Twins. During his career Guthrie has performed ...
. They worked together initially when Budd worked with Guthrie's band
Cocteau Twins Cocteau Twins was a Scottish rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth by Robin Guthrie (guitars, drum machine) and Will Heggie (bass), adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981 and replacing Heggie with multi-instrum ...
on their 1985 collaboration ''
The Moon and the Melodies ''The Moon and the Melodies'' is a collaborative studio album by Scottish dream pop band Cocteau Twins and the American minimalist composer Harold Budd. It was released 10 November 1986 by 4AD. The name "Cocteau Twins" did not appear on the r ...
''. The record was released by 4AD under all the collaborator's names (rather than being a Cocteau Twins/Harold Budd record), with Budd being listed first as it was an alphabetical listing. In November 1986, the record charted on the UK Top 75 album chart, spending a week at number 46. Budd and Guthrie subsequently released several albums together, including two soundtracks to the Greg Araki films ''
Mysterious Skin ''Mysterious Skin'' is a 2004 coming-of-age film written and directed by Gregg Araki, adapted from Scott Heim's 1995 novel of the same name. The film tells the story of two pre-adolescent boys who both experienced sexual abuse as children, and h ...
'' (2004) and ''
White Bird in a Blizzard ''White Bird in a Blizzard'' is a 2014 art drama thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Com ...
'' (2014), with the last, 2020's ''Another Flower'', released four days before Budd's death. Budd also collaborated with
Andy Partridge Andrew John Partridge (born 11 November 1953) is an English guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer who founded the rock music, rock band XTC. He and Colin Moulding each acted as a songwriter and frontman for XTC, with Partridge writi ...
of
XTC XTC were an English rock band formed in Swindon in 1972. Fronted by songwriters Andy Partridge (guitars, vocals) and Colin Moulding (bass, vocals), the band gained popularity during the rise of punk and new wave in the 1970s, later playing in ...
on the album '' Through the Hill'' (1994),
John Foxx John Foxx (born Dennis Leigh; 26 September 1948) is an English singer, musician, artist, photographer, graphic designer, writer, teacher and lecturer. He was the original lead singer of the new wave band Ultravox, before leaving to embark on a ...
on the album '' Translucence/Drift Music'' (2003) and work with
Jah Wobble John Joseph Wardle (born 11 August 1958), known by the stage name Jah Wobble, is an English bass guitarist and singer. He became known to a wider audience as the original bass player in Public Image Ltd (PiL) in the late 1970s and early 1980s; ...
on the ''Solaris'' concert and live album in 2002. He composed music for the score of the 2020 miniseries ''
I Know This Much Is True ''I Know This Much Is True'' is the second novel by Wally Lamb, published in 1998. It was featured in Oprah's Book Club for June 1998. Plot summary The novel takes place in Three Rivers, Connecticut, in the early 1990s. Dominick Birdsey's ide ...
.''


Reception

Brian Eno called Budd "a great abstract painter trapped in the body of a musician". ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' said, "The core Budd sound of yearning piano motifs and reverb-laden impressionism is often called minimalism. But compared with the cyclical craft of
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, a ...
and early
Philip Glass Philip Glass (born January 31, 1937) is an American composer and pianist. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the late 20th century. Glass's work has been associated with minimal music, minimalism, being built up fr ...
, his low-key, expansive forays felt deftly maximalist. This has made Budd's craft synonymous with the dreamworld. An heir to
Satie Eric Alfred Leslie Satie (, ; ; 17 May 18661 July 1925), who signed his name Erik Satie after 1884, was a French composer and pianist. He was the son of a French father and a British mother. He studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, Paris Conse ...
and
Debussy (Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influential composers of the ...
, his music was treated and poetic, never kneejerk nor incautious."


Death

Budd was undergoing therapy at a short-term rehabilitation facility after suffering a stroke on November 11, 2020. It was there he contracted
COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
amid the
COVID-19 pandemic in California Ten of the first twenty confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States occurred in California, the first of which was confirmed on January 26, 2020. All of the early confirmed cases were persons who had recently travelled to China, as testing wa ...
. He died from complications of COVID-19 at an
Arcadia Arcadia may refer to: Places Australia * Arcadia, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney * Arcadia, Queensland * Arcadia, Victoria Greece * Arcadia (region), a region in the central Peloponnese * Arcadia (regional unit), a modern administrative un ...
hospital on December 8, 2020. He was 84 years old.


Selected discography

* ''
The Pavilion of Dreams ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...
'' (1978) E.G. Records produced by Brian Eno * '' Ambient 2: The Plateaux of Mirror'' (1980) E.G. Records with Brian Eno * '' The Pearl'' (1984) E.G. Records with Brian Eno * '' Lovely Thunder'' (1986) E.G. Records produced by Michael Hoenig * ''
The Moon and the Melodies ''The Moon and the Melodies'' is a collaborative studio album by Scottish dream pop band Cocteau Twins and the American minimalist composer Harold Budd. It was released 10 November 1986 by 4AD. The name "Cocteau Twins" did not appear on the r ...
'' (1986) 4AD with Simon Raymonde, Robin Guthrie and Elizabeth Fraser of
Cocteau Twins Cocteau Twins was a Scottish rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth by Robin Guthrie (guitars, drum machine) and Will Heggie (bass), adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981 and replacing Heggie with multi-instrum ...
* '' The White Arcades'' (1988) Opal Records produced by Brian Eno * '' By the Dawn's Early Light'' (1991) Opal Records with
Bill Nelson Clarence William Nelson II (born September 29, 1942) is an American politician and attorney serving as the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Nelson previously served as a United States Senator from Flor ...
, B. J. Cole,
Susan Allen Susan Allen (born March 27, 1963) is an American politician and former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), she represented District 62B, a southside district encompa ...
* ''
Music for 3 Pianos ''Music for 3 Pianos'' is an EP by Harold Budd, Ruben Garcia and Daniel Lentz Daniel Lentz (born March 10, 1942, Latrobe, Pennsylvania, United States) is an American classical electronic music composer and artist who specializes in sculptured ...
'' (1992) All Saints Records with Ruben Garcia and Daniel Lentz. * '' Luxa'' (1996) All Saints Records * ''
The Room ''The Room'' is a 2003 American drama film written, produced, executive produced and directed by Tommy Wiseau, who stars in the film alongside Juliette Danielle and Greg Sestero. The film centers on a melodramatic love triangle between amiable ...
'' (2000) Atlantic Records * '' Translucence/Drift Music'' (2003) Edsel Records with John Foxx * '' Avalon Sutra / As Long as I Can Hold My Breath'' 2-CD digipak (2004)
Samadhisound Samadhi Sound (or samadhisound) is an independent record label founded by singer and musician David Sylvian after his departure from Virgin Records in the late nineties. The label mainly serves as a platform for Sylvian to release his own work ...
produced by Harold Budd * ''
Mysterious Skin – Music from the Film ''Mysterious Skin: Music from the Film'' is an album of music composed and performed by Robin Guthrie and Harold Budd for the film ''Mysterious Skin''. The music was published on a CD inside a digipak containing images from the film. Critical re ...
'' (2005) Commotion Records/Rykodisc with Robin Guthrie * ''
White Bird in a Blizzard ''White Bird in a Blizzard'' is a 2014 art drama thriller Thriller may refer to: * Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television ** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre Comics * ''Thriller'' (DC Com ...
'' (2014) Lakeshore Records with Robin Guthrie * ''Another Flower'' (2020) Darla Records with Robin Guthrie


See also

*
Experimental music Experimental music is a general label for any music or music genre that pushes existing boundaries and genre definitions. Experimental compositional practice is defined broadly by exploratory sensibilities radically opposed to, and questioning of, ...
*
List of ambient music artists This is a list of ambient music artists. This includes artists who have either been very important to the genre or have had a considerable amount of exposure (such as those who have been on a major label). This list does not include little-known ...


References


External links

* * *
Detailed New York Times obituary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Budd, Harold 1936 births 2020 deaths 4AD artists 20th-century American composers 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American pianists 20th-century classical composers 21st-century American composers 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century American pianists 21st-century classical composers All Saints Records artists Ambient musicians American male pianists American male poets American electronic musicians American experimental musicians Deaths from the COVID-19 pandemic in California E.G. Records artists Military personnel from California New-age musicians People from Victorville, California Record producers from California Samadhi Sound artists USC Thornton School of Music alumni Writers from Los Angeles Darla Records artists RareNoiseRecords artists Atlantic Records artists