Terry Riley facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Terry Riley
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Riley in 2017
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| Background information | |
| Born | June 24, 1935 Colfax, California, US |
| Genres | Minimalism, avant-garde, tape, electronic, microtonal, classical |
| Instruments | Electric organ, tape machine, saxophone, keyboards, synthesizer, piano, tambura |
| Years active | 1950s–present |
Terrence Mitchell Riley (born June 24, 1935) is an American composer and musician. He is famous for being a pioneer of minimalist music. This style of music often uses simple ideas that are repeated and slowly changed.
Terry Riley's music was inspired by jazz and Indian classical music. He became known for using repetition, tape music (music made with tape recorders), and improvisation (making music up on the spot). His most famous works are In C (from 1964) and the album A Rainbow in Curved Air (from 1969). Both are considered very important in minimalist music. They also influenced experimental music, rock, and modern electronic music.
Riley grew up in Redding, California. He started studying music and playing piano in the 1950s. He worked with other composers like La Monte Young. He also became involved with the San Francisco Tape Music Center. In 1970, he began studying with Indian classical singer Pandit Pran Nath. Riley often performed with him. Throughout his career, he has worked with many musicians. His most frequent collaboration has been with the chamber ensemble Kronos Quartet. He also often performs with his son, guitarist Gyan Riley.
Contents
Life and Musical Journey
Terry Riley was born in Colfax, California, on June 24, 1935. He spent his childhood in Redding, California. In the 1950s, he started playing piano by himself and studying how to compose music. He attended several universities, including San Francisco State University.
Early Collaborations and Influences
Riley became friends with composer La Monte Young. Young's early minimalist pieces, which used long, held notes, influenced Riley. They performed together in 1959–60. Riley also worked at the experimental San Francisco Tape Music Center. There, he collaborated with other important musicians like Morton Subotnick and Steve Reich.
During the 1960s, Riley traveled a lot in Europe. He learned about different kinds of music and earned money by playing piano in bars. He also played briefly with the Theatre of Eternal Music in New York.
Studying Indian Classical Music
One of Riley's most important teachers was Pandit Pran Nath (1918–1996). He was a master of Indian classical singing. Riley traveled to India many times to study with him. He learned to play instruments like the tabla and tambura and to sing. In 1971, Riley started teaching Indian classical music at Mills College.
Riley also says that John Cage and famous jazz groups, like those led by John Coltrane and Miles Davis, influenced his work. In 2007, he received an honorary doctorate degree in music from Chapman University.
Working with the Kronos Quartet
Around 1980, Riley began working with the Kronos Quartet. He met their founder, David Harrington, at Mills College. Riley has written 13 string quartet pieces for this group. He also wrote his first orchestral piece, Jade Palace, in 1991. He continues to compose for orchestras. Today, he still performs and teaches both Indian raga singing and solo piano.
Riley continues to perform live concerts. He was part of the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in May 2011.
Musical Style and Techniques
Terry Riley's music combines different styles. It mixes American minimalism, Indian classical raga, barrelhouse piano, and modal jazz. His music is known for its changing structures and long improvisations. Riley was first inspired by jazz saxophonist John Coltrane.
How Riley Creates Music
Riley's music often involves improvising using musical patterns of different lengths. His works like In C (1964) and the Keyboard Studies (1964–1966) show this technique. The first performance of In C included musicians like Steve Reich and Pauline Oliveros.
In C is unique because it has 53 short musical parts. Each part has a different pattern but is in the key of C. One musician plays a steady pulse of C notes on the piano to keep time. Other musicians, using any instrument, play these musical parts. They follow a few simple rules, and the different parts fit together as the music goes on.
Using Tape Loops and Electronics
In the 1950s, Riley was already experimenting with tape loops. This was a new technology at the time. He later created something he called a "time-lag accumulator" with a sound engineer. He has continued to use tape manipulation in his studio and live performances. An early tape loop piece, Music for the Gift (1963), featured the trumpet playing of Chet Baker.
Riley's famous electronic album, A Rainbow in Curved Air (released in 1969), inspired many later electronic music artists. For example, Pete Townshend of The Who used similar organ sounds in songs like "Won't Get Fooled Again" and "Baba O'Riley". The song "Baba O'Riley" was even named in tribute to Terry Riley. The English rock group Curved Air, formed in 1970, took its name from Riley's album.
Riley has worked with many other musicians. These include the Rova Saxophone Quartet and Pauline Oliveros. His 1995 Lisbon Concert recording features him playing solo piano. In the notes for that album, Riley mentioned jazz pianists like Art Tatum as his "heroes." This shows how important jazz was to his musical ideas.
Family Life
Terry Riley has three children. His daughter is Colleen, and his two sons are Gyan, who is a guitarist, and Shahn. He was married to Ann Riley until she passed away in 2015.
Discography
- 1963: Music for The Gift
- 1965: Reed Streams
- 1967: You're No Good (released in 2000)
- 1968: Germ (with Gérard Frémy & Martine Joste)
- 1968: In C
- 1969: A Rainbow in Curved Air
- 1971: Church of Anthrax (with John Cale)
- 1972: Happy Ending (soundtrack)
- 1972: Persian Surgery Dervishes
- 1975: Le Secret de la Vie (Lifespan film soundtrack)
- 1975: Descending Moonshine Dervishes
- 1980: Shri Camel
- 1983: Songs for the Ten Voices of the Two Prophets
- 1984: Terry Riley: Cadenza on the Night Plain (with the Kronos Quartet)
- 1984: Terry Riley and Krishna Bhatt Duo (with Krishna Bhatt)
- 1985: No Man's Land
- 1986: The Harp of New Albion
- 1987: Chanting the Light of Foresight (with Rova Saxophone Quartet)
- 1989: Salome Dances for Peace (for the Kronos Quartet)
- 1995: In C – 25th Anniversary Concert
- 1995: Lisbon Concert (solo piano)
- 1997: Lazy Afternoon Among the Crocodiles (with Stefano Scodanibbio)
- 1998: Piano Music of John Adams and Terry Riley (performed by Gloria Cheng)
- 1999: The Book of Abbeyozzud
- 2001: Moscow Conservatory Solo Piano Concert
- 2001: Terry Riley: Requiem for Adam (with the Kronos Quartet)
- 2002: Atlantis Nath
- 2003: Cantos Desiertos
- 2004: I Like Your Eyes Liberty (duets with Michael McClure)
- 2004: The Cusp of Magic (with the Kronos Quartet)
- 2005: Diamond Fiddle Language (duets with Stefano Scodanibbio)
- 2005: Assassin Reverie (Arte Quartett)
- 2008: Banana Humberto (piano concerto)
- 2008: The Last Camel in Paris
- 2010: Two Early Works
- 2010: Autodreamographical Tales
- 2011: Keyboard Studies Nos. 1 and 2 / Tread on the Trail
- 2012: Aleph
- 2015: ZOFO Plays Terry Riley (ZOFO piano duo)
- 2015: One Earth, One People, One Love: Kronos Plays Terry Riley (Kronos Quartet)
- 2015: Music Of Terry Riley – Sunrise Of The Planetary Dream Collector (Kronos Quartet)
- 2019: Sun Rings (Kronos Quartet)
- 2019: The Lion's Throne (with Amelia Cuni)
- 2019: Archangels (with Julian Wachner)
- 2021: Zephyr (Francesco D'Orazio, violin)
- 2022: Autodreamographical Tales (Bang on a Can All-Stars)
- 2022: Keyboard Studies (John Tilbury)
- 2022: Organum for Stefano
- 2022: The Sands (Cleveland Orchestra)
- 2023: Standard(S)and: Kobuchizawa Sessions #1
Filmography
- 1970: Corridor. Film by Standish Lawder.
- 1975: Lifespan. Film by Alexander Whitelaw. Soundtrack released as Le secret de la vie.
- 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.
- 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" was featured in the video game Grand Theft Auto IV. It can be heard on the fictional radio station "The Journey."
- 2017: Hochelaga, Land of Souls. Film by François Girard.
See also
In Spanish: Terry Riley para niños
