AMERICAN MUSIC SERIES                                                                                             251 a-d

Terry Riley

with Vivian Perlis

Camptonville, CA

June 17, 1997

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Side a                                                                                                                         pp. 1-22

Childhood and family--musical beginnings--early high school influences: Ralph Wadsworth and Duane Hampton--piano lessons with Adolph Bahler [?]--study at San Francisco State--reincarnation--Loren Rush and Robert Erickson--early start of a family--working for United Airlines--first compositions--neo-classical and jazz influences--playing ragtime piano at the Gold Street Saloon--Wally Rose--graduate work at Berkeley--Spectra--friendship with La Monte Young--work with Anna Halprin Dance Company--tape loops--work with ORTF engineer in Paris--M Mix (Music from Four-Legged Stool)--String Trio--post-serial and repetitive style--move to Europe--playing clubs at SAC bases--listening to music at clubs--working with Ken Dewey on The Gift in Paris--Chet Baker--The Living Theater--Jerry Walters’ [?] mobile--ground work for sixties compositions.

Side b                                                                                                                        pp. 23-41

Return to The States--Ramon Sender--Morton Subotnick and The Tape Music Center --premiere of In C--importance of In C--attempt to return to Europe via Mexico--four year stay in New York--La Monte Young and The Theater of Eternal Music--playing sax and singing--acquisition of harmonium--first album: Reed Streams (Keyboard Studies and Poppy Nogood and the Phantom Band)--the “all-night” concert--recording In C for Columbia Masterworks--creative associate in Buffalo with Lukas Foss--Rainbow in Curved Air--labels: pulse music, trance music, minimalism, parametric music--minimalism, spiritual revolution of the sixties--Steve Reich and Philip Glass--return to California in Sixty-Nine--merging of musics--people making their own music--hearing Dervish-type music in Morocco--Pandit Pran Nath’s coming to America and Riley’s first meeting with him.

Side c                                                                                                                         pp. 41-60

Religious background--psychedelic drug experiences--achieving spiritual states through disciplined raga study--studying and touring with Pran Nath--taking on Pran Nath’s students after his death--lack of notated compositions during ten year period of studying Indian music--Olson III--oral teaching tradition--use of combo organ--Persian Surgery Dervishes--music for films: “Le Secret de la Vie” and “Les Jeux Ferme [?]”--Shri Camel--teaching at Mills--meeting David Harrington and association with Kronos String Quartet--using voices in pieces--using strings to express both Western and Eastern styles--G-Song--Sunrise of the Planetary Dream Collector--Cadenza on the Night Plain--The Mythic Bird Calls--Salome Dances for Peace--collaboration with Kronos--The Sands--Guggenheim Fellowship in 1979 and first vocal songs--Chanting the Light of Foresight--Rova Saxophone Quartet--collaboration with Lee Brewer on The Tain--written compositions, including: Reapmos and Navos [?], Four Woelfli Portraits, El Hombre, The Jade Palace Orchestral Dances, June Buddhas--jazz influences.

Side d                                                                                                                        pp. 60-77

Direction of and changes in new music--role of today’s composers--anonymity of classical Indian composers--Riley’s children and their involvement with music and/or Buddhism--Riley’s continuation of Pran Nath’s teaching in India--deeper involvement with Indian classical music--daily raga practice--history of ragas--complexity of languages in Indian vocal music--recordings of Pran Nath--publishers and preservation of manuscripts.