Terry Riley (b. 1935) is an American composer and performer often regarded as one of the founders of minimalism, a movement that transformed 20th-century music by emphasizing repetition, gradual change, and tonal clarity.
Riley studied composition at San Francisco State University, the University of California, Berkeley, and the San Francisco Conservatory of Music. His early influences included jazz, Indian classical music, and avant-garde experimentalism—especially the work of John Cage and La Monte Young, who deeply shaped his approach to open form and sustained tones.
Riley’s breakthrough came with his revolutionary composition In C (1964), often considered the first major minimalist work.
The piece consists of 53 short musical phrases that performers repeat freely, creating shimmering, pulsing textures. It can be performed by any number of instruments, lasting anywhere from 20 minutes to over an hour. Its modular, participatory structure profoundly influenced composers such as Steve Reich, Philip Glass, and John Adams, as well as rock and electronic musicians.
After In C, Riley delved into improvisation, tape loops, and Indian raga. He studied with Pandit Pran Nath, mastering the raga singing tradition and incorporating modal improvisation into his works. Albums like A Rainbow in Curved Air (1969) combined tape delay, electronic organ, and repetitive rhythmic structures, influencing early ambient, progressive rock, and electronic music.
Artists such as The Who (on “Baba O’Riley”), Brian Eno, and Pete Townshend drew from Riley’s looping and drone concepts.
Riley’s later music explores more complex rhythmic patterns and cross-cultural blends. He collaborated extensively with the Kronos Quartet, producing works like Cadenza on the Night Plain (1984) and Requiem for Adam (2001). His compositions fuse Western counterpoint, Indian microtonality, and jazz improvisation. He continues to perform and record well into the 21st century, maintaining a deep connection between meditation, music, and consciousness.