La Monte Young facts for kids

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Quick facts for kids La Monte Young
Young in c. 1961
Born	(1935-10-14) October 14, 1935 (age 89) Bern, Idaho, U.S.
Occupation	Composer musician performance artist
Spouse(s)	Marian Zazeela (m. 1963; died 2024)
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La Monte Thornton Young (born October 14, 1935) is an American composer, musician, and performance artist. He is known as one of the first American minimalist composers. He is also a key figure in the Fluxus art movement and avant-garde music after World War II.

Young is famous for exploring sustained tones, which are sounds held for a very long time. He started this with his 1958 piece Trio for Strings. His music often makes people think about what music really is. This is especially true for his Compositions 1960, which are text instructions for unusual actions. Even though many of his recordings are hard to find, his work has inspired many famous musicians. These include artists in avant-garde, rock, and ambient music.

In the 1950s, Young played jazz saxophone and studied how to compose music in California. In 1960, he moved to New York. There, he became important in the downtown music and Fluxus art scenes. He then became known for his new ideas in drone music. He first called this "dream music." He worked with his group, the Theatre of Eternal Music. His collaborators included Tony Conrad, John Cale, and his wife, the multimedia artist Marian Zazeela.

Since 1962, he has worked a lot with Marian Zazeela. Together, they created the Dream House, which is an environment of sound and light. In 1964, he started working on The Well-Tuned Piano. This is an improvisational piece that he has performed many times over the years. Starting in 1970, he and Zazeela studied with the Hindustani singer Pandit Pran Nath. In 2002, Young and Zazeela formed the Just Alap Raga Ensemble with their student Jung Hee Choi.

About La Monte Young's Life

Early Life and Studies (1935–1959)

La Monte Young was born in a log cabin in Bern, Idaho. As a child, he was fascinated by the sounds around him. He loved the continuous hum of electrical transformers and the sound of wind blowing. His family moved several times to Los Angeles as his father looked for work. He was raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Young started studying music at Los Angeles City College. He then went to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and earned a degree in 1958. In Los Angeles, he played jazz with famous musicians like Ornette Coleman. He continued his studies at the University of California, Berkeley from 1958 to 1960. In 1959, he attended summer classes in Germany with Karlheinz Stockhausen. In 1960, he moved to New York to study electronic music. During this time, his compositions were influenced by Gregorian chant, Indian classical music, and Japanese Gagaku.

Young's early works used a method called the "twelve-tone technique." He learned this from Leonard Stein, who worked with Arnold Schoenberg. In 1958, Young created Trio for Strings for violin, viola, and cello. This piece was very important for his later work and is seen as a starting point for minimalist music. In 1959, Young met John Cage, another influential composer. Cage and his pianist David Tudor performed some of Young's pieces. Young began to create conceptual art, using unusual sounds and actions in his music.

New York and Fluxus (1960–1969)

When Young moved to New York in 1960, he quickly connected with George Maciunas, who started the Fluxus art movement. Fluxus artists mixed music, visual art, and performance. Young organized concerts at Yoko Ono's loft in New York City.

During this time, Young created short, poem-like pieces called Compositions 1960. These pieces were often conceptual and sometimes impossible to perform. For example, Composition 1960 #10 tells the performer to "draw a straight line and follow it." Another piece, Composition 1960 #7, was very important for his future music. It simply said: "To be held for a long time," referring to two musical notes.

In 1962, Young wrote The Second Dream of the High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer. This piece is based on four specific musical notes. Most of his pieces after this used selected notes played continuously. Young began to plan Dream House, a sound and light installation. He imagined it as a "living organism" where musicians would live and create music all day. He formed the Theatre of Eternal Music to make Dream House and other pieces. The group included his wife Marian Zazeela, John Cale, and Tony Conrad.

In September 1966, Young and Zazeela created their first continuous electronic sound environment in their New York loft. They used sine wave generators and special lights to create a continuous installation. This Dream House was kept on almost all the time from 1966 to 1970. They worked, sang, and lived in it, studying its effects on themselves and visitors. Their performances often had no clear beginning or end.

Later Works and Collaborations (1970–Present)

By 1970, Young became very interested in music of Asia. He wanted to find older examples for the musical intervals he used. He met Indian musician Shyam Batnager, who introduced him to the recordings of Pandit Pran Nath. Young was very impressed and studied with Pran Nath for the rest of Pran Nath's life. Other students included Zazeela and Terry Riley.

Young considers The Well-Tuned Piano to be his greatest work. This is a long, changing composition for a piano tuned in a special way called just-intoned. Young first performed it in Rome in 1974. Performances of this piece can last over six hours. It is influenced by mathematics and Hindustani classical music.

Since the 1970s, Young and Zazeela have created many Dream House installations. These combine Young's sine wave sounds with Zazeela's light sculptures. A Dream House installation is open to the public today at the MELA Foundation in New York.

In 2002, Young, Zazeela, and their student Jung Hee Choi started the Just Alap Raga Ensemble. This group performs Indian classical music. They combine Western and Hindustani classical music traditions.

Musical Inspirations

Young's first musical inspiration came from his childhood in Idaho. He remembers the sound of wind blowing around his log cabin. He was fascinated by continuous sounds, both natural and human-made. He loved the hum of telephone poles and the drone of the tanpura in Indian classical music. He also found inspiration in the sustained tones of Japanese Gagaku music. The four notes he later called the "Dream chord" came from his early love for the continuous sound of telephone poles.

Jazz was a major influence on Young. He even planned to make it his career until 1956. Early on, Lee Konitz and Warne Marsh influenced his alto saxophone playing. Later, John Coltrane shaped his use of the sopranino saxophone. Jazz, along with Indian music, was important for his use of improvisation in his works after 1962.

La Monte Young discovered Indian music in 1957 at UCLA. He especially liked Ali Akbar Khan (who played the sarod) and Chatur Lal (who played the tabla). Learning to play the tambura with Pandit Pran Nath was a big step in his interest in long, sustained sounds. Young also acknowledges the influence of Japanese music, especially Gagaku, and Pygmy music.

Young discovered classical music later in life through his university teachers. He mentions Béla Bartók, Igor Stravinsky, and Claude Debussy as important. But the biggest impact on his compositions came from the "serialism" of Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern.

Impact on Music and Art

Young's use of long, sustained tones and very loud volumes has greatly influenced other artists. These include Tony Conrad, John Cale, and Brian Eno. John Cale said that La Monte Young was "perhaps the best part of my education."

Brian Eno, a pioneer in ambient music, calls Young "the daddy of us all." Eno said that Young's piece X for Henry Flynt was "a cornerstone of everything I've done since." Young's work also inspired experimental rock groups like the Velvet Underground and Sonic Youth.

Andy Warhol saw the 1962 premiere of Young's Trio for Strings. Film-maker Jonas Mekas said that Warhol's static films were directly inspired by this performance. In 1964, Young created a loud, minimalist drone soundtrack for Warhol's films like Kiss and Sleep.

Lou Reed's 1975 album Metal Machine Music mentions "Lamont Young's Dream Music" as an influence. The band Spacemen 3 was also influenced by Young's Dream Music for their album Dreamweapon: An Evening of Contemporary Sitar Music.

Even though Young has released very few recordings, his influence on other artists has been huge. Drone rock musician Dylan Carlson has also said that Young's work is a major influence on him.

Recordings

Studio Recordings

Drift Study 4:37:40-5:09:50 PM 5 VIII 68 NYC (1968)
31 VII 69 10:26-10:49 PM / 23 VIII 64 2:50:45-3:11 AM The Volga Delta – La Monte Young & Marian Zazeela (1969)
Dream House 78' 17" – La Monte Young / Marian Zazeela / The Theatre of Eternal Music (1974)
The Second Dream of the High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer from the Four Dreams of China (1991)
The Tamburas of Pandit Pran Nath – La Monte Young / Marian Zazeela (1999)
Inside the Dream Syndicate, Volume One: Day of Niagara (1965) – John Cale, Tony Conrad, Angus MacLise, La Monte Young, Marian Zazeela (2000. Not authorized by La Monte Young.)

Live Recordings

The Well-Tuned Piano 81 X 25 (6:17.50–11:18:59 pm NYC) (1988)
Just Stompin': Live at The Kitchen – La Monte Young and the Forever Bad Blues Band (1993)
Trio for Strings (1958) recorded live at the Dia:Chelsea Dream House, performed by Theatre of Eternal Music String Ensemble, four discs and a 32-page set of liner notes (2022)

Compilation Appearances

Small Pieces (5) for String Quartet ("On Remembering a Naiad") (1956) [included on Arditti String Quartet Edition, No. 15: U.S.A. (1993)]
Sarabande for any instruments (1959) [included on Just West Coast (1993)]
"89 VI 8 c. 1:45–1:52 am Paris Encore" from Poem for Tables, Chairs and Benches, etc. (1960) [included on Flux: Tellus Audio Cassette Magazine #24]
Excerpt "31 I 69 c. 12:17:33-12:24:33 pm NYC" [included on Aspen #8's flexi-disc (1970)] from Drift Study; "31 I 69 c. 12:17:33–12:49:58 pm NYC" from Map of 49's Dream The Two Systems of Eleven Sets of Galactic Intervals (1969) [included on Ohm and Ohm+ (2000 & 2005)]
566 for Henry Flynt [included on Music in Germany 1950–2000: Experimental Music Theatre (2004)]

List of Works

Scherzo in a minor (c. 1953), piano;
Rondo in d minor (c. 1953), piano;
Annod (1953–55), dance band or jazz ensemble;
Wind Quintet (1954);
Variations (1955), string quartet;
Young's Blues (c. 1955–59);
Fugue in d minor (c. 1956), violin, viola, cello;
Op. 4 (1956), brass, percussion;
Five Small Pieces for String Quartet, On Remembering A Naiad, 1. A Wisp, 2. A Gnarl, 3. A Leaf, 4. A Twig, 5. A Tooth (1956);
Canon (1957), any two instruments;
Fugue in a minor (1957), any four instruments;
Fugue in c minor (1957), organ or harpsichord;
Fugue in eb minor (1957), brass or other instruments;
Fugue in f minor (1957), two pianos;
Prelude in f minor (1957), piano;
Variations for Alto Flute, Bassoon, Harp and String Trio (1957);
for Brass (1957), brass octet;
for Guitar (1958), guitar;
Trio for Strings (1958), violin, viola, cello;
Study (c.1958–59), violin, viola (unfinished);
Sarabande (1959), keyboard, brass octet, string quartet, orchestra, others;
Studies I, II, and III (1959), piano;
Vision (1959), piano, 2 brass, recorder, 4 bassoons, violin, viola, cello, contrabass and making use of a random number book;
[Untitled] (1959–60), live friction sounds;
[Untitled] (1959–62), jazz-drone improvisations;
Poem for Chairs, Tables, Benches, etc. (1960), chairs, tables, benches and unspecified sound sources;
2 Sounds (1960), recorded friction sounds;
Compositions 1960 #s 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 13, 15 (1960), performance pieces;
Piano Pieces for David Tudor #s 1, 2, 3 (1960), performance pieces;
Invisible Poem Sent to Terry Jennings (1960), performance pieces;
Piano Pieces for Terry Riley #s 1, 2 (1960), performance pieces;
Target for Jasper Johns (1960), piano;
Arabic Numeral (Any Integer) to H.F. (1960), piano(s) or gong(s) or ensembles of at least 45 instruments of the same timbre, or combinations of the above, or orchestra;
Compositions 1961 #s 1–29 (1961), performance pieces;
Young's Dorian Blues in B♭ (c. 1960 or 1961);
Young's Dorian Blues in G (c. 1960/1961–present);
Young's Aeolian Blues in B♭ (Summer 1961);
Death Chant (1961), male voices, carillon or large bells;
Response to Henry Flynt Work Such That No One Knows What's Going On (c. 1962);
[Improvisations] (1962–64), sopranino saxophone, vocal drones, various instruments. Realizations include: Bb Dorian Blues, The Fifth/Fourth Piece, ABABA, EbDEAD, The Overday, Early Tuesday Morning Blues, and Sunday Morning Blues;
Poem on Dennis' Birthday (1962), unspecified instruments;
The Four Dreams of China (The Harmonic Versions) (1962), including The First Dream of China, The First Blossom of Spring, The First Dream of The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer, The Second Dream of The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer, tunable, sustaining instruments of like timbre, in multiples of 4;
Studies in The Bowed Disc (1963), gong;
Pre-Tortoise Dream Music (1964), sopranino saxophone, soprano saxophone, vocal drone, violin, viola, sine waves;
The Tortoise, His Dreams and Journeys (1964–present), voices, various instruments, sine waves. Realizations include: Prelude to The Tortoise, The Tortoise Droning Selected Pitches from The Holy Numbers for The Two Black Tigers, The Green Tiger and The Hermit, The Tortoise Recalling The Drone of The Holy Numbers as They Were Revealed in The Dreams of The Whirlwind and The Obsidian Gong and Illuminated by The Sawmill, The Green Sawtooth Ocelot and The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer;
The Well-Tuned Piano (1964–73/81–present). Each realization is a separately titled and independent composition. Over 60 realizations to date. World première: Rome 1974. American première: New York 1975;
Sunday Morning Dreams (1965), tunable sustaining instruments and/or sine waves;
Composition 1965 $50 (1965), performance piece;
Map of 49's Dream The Two Systems of Eleven Sets of Galactic Intervals Ornamental Lightyears Tracery (1966–present), voices, various instruments, sine waves;
Bowed Mortar Relays (1964) (realization of Composition 1960 # 9), Soundtracks for Andy Warhol Films Eat, Sleep, Kiss, "Haircut", tape;
The Two Systems of Eleven Categories (1966–present), theory work;
Chords from The Tortoise, His Dreams and Journeys (1967–present), sine waves. Realizations include: Intervals and Triads from Map of 49's Dream The Two Systems of Eleven Sets of Galactic Intervals Ornamental Lightyears Tracery (1967), sound environment;
Robert C. Scull Commission (1967), sine waves;
Claes and Patty Oldenburg Commission (1967), sine waves;
Betty Freeman Commission (1967), sound and light box & sound environment;
Drift Studies (1967–present), sine waves;
for Guitar (Just Intonation Version) (1978), guitar;
for Guitar Prelude and Postlude (1980), one or more guitars;
The Subsequent Dreams of China (1980), tunable, sustaining instruments of like timbre, in multiples of 8;
The Gilbert B. Silverman Commission to Write, in Ten Words or Less, a Complete History of Fluxus Including Philosophy, Attitudes, Influences, Purposes (1981);
Chords from The Well-Tuned Piano (1981–present), sound environments. Includes: The Opening Chord (1981), The Magic Chord (1984), The Magic Opening Chord (1984);
Trio for Strings (1983) Versions for string quartet, string orchestra, and violin, viola, cello, bass;
Trio for Strings, trio basso version (1984), viola, cello, bass;
Trio for Strings, sextet version (1984);
Trio for Strings, String Octet Version (1984), 2 violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos, 2 basses;
Trio for Strings Postlude from The Subsequent Dreams of China (c. 1984), bowed strings;
The Melodic Versions (1984) of The Four Dreams of China (1962), including The First Dream of China, The First Blossom of Spring, The First Dream of The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer, The Second Dream of The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer, tunable, sustaining instruments of like timbre, in multiples of 4;
The Melodic Versions (1984) of The Subsequent Dreams of China, (1980) including The High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer's Second Dream of The First Blossom of Spring, tunable, sustaining instruments of like timbre, in multiples of 8;
The Big Dream (1984), sound environment;
Orchestral Dreams (1985), orchestra;
The Big Dream Symmetries #s 1–6 (1988), sound environments;
The Symmetries in Prime Time from 144 to 112 with 119 (1989), including The Close Position Symmetry, The Symmetry Modeled on BDS # 1, The Symmetry Modeled on BDS # 4, The Symmetry Modeled on BDS # 7, The Romantic Symmetry, The Romantic Symmetry (over a 60 cycle base), The Great Romantic Symmetry, sound environments;
The Lower Map of The Eleven's Division in The Romantic Symmetry (over a 60 cycle base) in Prime Time from 144 to 112 with 119 (1989–1990), unspecified instruments and sound environment;
The Prime Time Twins (1989–90) including The Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 144 to 112; 72 to 56 and 38 to 28; Including The Special Primes 1 and 2 (1989);
The Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 576 to 448; 288 to 224; 144 to 112; 72 to 56; 36 to 28; with The Range Limits 576, 448, 288, 224, 144, 56 and 28 (1990), sound environments;
Chronos Kristalla (1990), string quartet;
The Young Prime Time Twins (1991), including The Young Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 2304 to 1792; 1152 to 896; 576 to 448; 288 to 224; 144 to 112; 72 to 56; 36 to 28; Including or Excluding The Range Limits 2304, 1792, 1152, 576, 448, 288, 224, 56 and 28 (1991),
The Young Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 2304 to 1792; 1152 to 896; 576 to 448; 288 to 224; 144 to 112; 72 to 56; 36 to 28; 18 to 14; Including or Excluding The Range Limits 2304, 1792, 1152, 576, 448, 288, 224, 56, 28 and 18; and Including The Special Young Prime Twins Straddling The Range Limits 1152, 72 and 18 (1991),
The Young Prime Time Twins in The Ranges 1152 to 896; 576 to 448; 288 to 224; 144 to 112; 72 to 56; 36 to 28; Including or Excluding The Range Limits 1152, 576, 448, 288, 224, 56 and 28; with One of The Inclusory Optional Bases: 7; 8; 14:8; 18:14:8; 18:16:14; 18:16:14:8; 9:7:4; or The Empty Base (1991), sound environments;
The Symmetries in Prime Time from 288 to 224 with 279, 261 and 2 X 119 with One of The Inclusory Optional Bases: 7; 8; 14:8; 18:14:8; 18:16:14; 18:16:14:8; 9:7:4; or The Empty Base (1991–present), including The Symmetries in Prime Time When Centered above and below The Lowest Term Primes in The Range 288 to 224 with The Addition of 279 and 261 in Which The Half of The Symmetric Division Mapped above and Including 288 Consists of The Powers of 2 Multiplied by The Primes within The Ranges of 144 to 128, 72 to 64 and 36 to 32 Which Are Symmetrical to Those Primes in Lowest Terms in The Half of The Symmetric Division Mapped below and Including 224 within The Ranges 126 to 112, 63 to 56 and 31.5 to 28 with The Addition of 119 and with One of The Inclusory Optional Bases: 7; 8; 14:8; 18:14:8; 18:16:14; 18:16:14:8; 9:7:4; or The Empty Base (1991), sound environments;
Annod (1953–55) 92 X 19 Version for Zeitgeist (1992), alto saxophone, vibraphone, piano, bass, drums, including 92 XII 22 Two-Part Harmony and The 1992 XII Annod Backup Riffs;
Just Charles & Cello in The Romantic Chord (2002–2003), cello, pre-recorded cello drones and light design;
Raga Sundara, vilampit khayal set in Raga Yaman Kalyan (2002–present), voices, various instruments, tambura drone;
Trio for Strings (1958) Just Intonation Version (1984-2001-2005), 2 cellos, 2 violins, 2 violas;