He studied drumming when he was 14 with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra timpanist;
later he took a degree in philosophy at Cornell (1953-7) and studied composition at the
Juilliard School (1958-61) and at Mills College (1962-3) with Milhaud
and Berio, also becoming interested in Balinese and African
music. In 1966 he began performing with his own ensemble,
chiefly of percussionists, developing a music of gradually changing ostinato pattems that
move out of phase, creating an effect of shimmering surfaces; this culminated in Drumming
(1971), a 90-minute elaboration of a single rhythmic cell.
From circa 1972 he added harmonic change to his music, and later
(Tehillim, 1981) melody.
He has also worked with larger orchestral and choral forces (The
Desert Music, 1983).
Different Trains (1988), for string quartet and tape, won a Grammy for the best new
composition.
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