Lou Harrison
Lou Harrison. Born in Portland in 1917, Lou Harrison is now recognized as one of America's greatest living composers. He studied with Henry Cowell (who ignited his interest in music of other cultures and new American music) and Arnold Schoenberg. Harrison pioneered the use of "found" instruments and staged the first percussion concerts with John Cage in 1930s San Francisco. In 1940s New York, Harrison became a protégé of composer/critic Virgil Thomson, and conducted the 1946 premiere of Charles Ives' Third Symphony, which won Ives the Pulitzer Prize. In the 1950s, Harrison pioneered the use of just intonation, and he has continued to be in the forefront of the use of alternate tunings. With his partner, Bill Colvig, he built the first American gamelan and as a teacher, performer and composer helped popularize this Indonesian music in the West. As classical music has embraced melody and world music influences, Harrison's music has become justly popular and is available on dozens of CDs. Harrison has worked with distinguished choreographers from Martha Graham to Mark Morris, and his music has been performed by major symphony orchestras and performers such as Keith Jarrett, Yo Yo Ma, and the Kronos Quartet.