La Monte Young

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Lore & Background

Young was born in a log cabin in Bern, Idaho, and raised as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He graduated from John Marshall High School, studied at Los Angeles City College, and received a BA from UCLA in 1958. He undertook additional studies at UC Berkeley from 1958 to 1960. In 1959 he attended the Darmstadt International Summer Courses for New Music under Karlheinz Stockhausen. His early works used the twelve-tone technique, which he studied under Leonard Stein. In 1958, he developed the Trio for Strings, described as an 'origin point for minimalism.' Influenced by John Cage, he turned toward conceptual and indeterminate compositions. In 1960, he moved to New York to study electronic music with Richard Maxfield at the New School for Social Research. In the spring of 1961 he developed an artistic relationship with Fluxus founder George Maciunas. In December 1960, Young curated and organized a series of concert performances at Yoko Ono's loft at 112 Chambers Street. During this period, he created short, haiku-like text scores such as Composition 1960 #10 to Bob Morris: 'draw a straight line and follow it.'

In 1962, based on his dream chord, Young wrote The Second Dream of the High-Tension Line Stepdown Transformer. He began planning Dream House, a light and sound installation conceived as a dream chord 'work that would be played continuously and ultimately exist as a living organism with a life and tradition of its own.' He formed the music collective Theatre of Eternal Music, which initially included Marian Zazeela (whom he married in 1963), Angus MacLise, and Billy Name. In 1964 the ensemble comprised Young and Zazeela, John Cale, Tony Conrad, and sometimes Terry Riley. In 1964, he began work on his unfinished improvisatory composition The Well-Tuned Piano. On September 25, 1965, Young conducted the Fluxus FluxOrchestra at Carnegie Recital Hall. Young and Zazeela's first continuous electronic sound environment was created in their loft on Church Street in September 1966 with sine wave generators and light sources, maintained almost continuously from September 1966 to January 1970. Beginning in 1970, Young and Zazeela studied under Hindustani singer Pandit Pran Nath. In 2002, Young and Zazeela formed the Just Alap Raga Ensemble with their disciple Jung Hee Choi. Young worked extensively with Zazeela between 1962 and her death in 2024; together, they recorded, performed live, and developed the Dream House sound and light environment.

Reader's Guide

La Monte Young's significance lies in his role as a foundational figure in American minimalism and drone music. His 1958 Trio for Strings is described as an 'origin point for minimalism,' and his sustained-tone compositions challenged conventional definitions of music. Through Fluxus text scores like Compositions 1960, he introduced conceptual and performative elements that blurred boundaries between music, art, and life. His Theatre of Eternal Music collective pioneered drone music (originally called dream music), influencing later avant-garde, rock, and ambient artists. The Dream House installations, combining sound and light, anticipated immersive environmental art. Young's study of Hindustani music with Pandit Pran Nath deepened his exploration of just intonation and sustained tones. Though few recordings remain in print, his work has inspired prominent musicians across various genres. His legacy is that of a radical innovator who expanded the possibilities of musical experience.

Did You Know?

• Young was born in a log cabin in Bern, Idaho.
• His Composition 1960 #10 to Bob Morris instructs: 'draw a straight line and follow it'—a directive Young says has guided his life and work since.
• In 1965, Young conducted the Fluxus FluxOrchestra at Carnegie Recital Hall, with programs folded into paper airplanes and launched into the audience.
• Young and Zazeela practiced an artificial sleep–wake cycle with 'days' longer than twenty-four hours while living in their Dream House environment.
• Young gave the world premiere of The Well-Tuned Piano in Rome in 1974, 10 years after the creation of the piece.