"In American Music in the Twentieth Century, composer and music critic Kyle Gann wrote, .When John Cage, who studied with Schoenberg, was asked in 1989 whom he would study with if he were young today, he replied, 'James Tenney.'' A performer as well as a composer and theorist, Tenney was co-founder and conductor of the Tone Roads Chamber Ensemble in New York City (1963-70). He was a pioneer in the field of electronic and computer music, working with Max Mathews and others at the Bell Telephone Laboratories in the early 1960s to develop programs for computer sound-generation and composition. He has written works for a variety of media, both instrumental and electronic, many of them using alternative tuning systems.
Tenney is the author of articles on musical acoustics"
Title link takes you to James Tenney's bio. Via Peter Grenader on AH:
"I've just received word that an American music maverick and electronic music
poineer James Tenney has passed after a strident six month long battle with
cancer. He will be missed for his extraordinary contribution to 20th century
music, a career that spanned over over 50 years, and as one of the most
genuine and generous people in the field. A brief biography of Tenney can
be found at: link"
