| Timeline |
| 1912 |
Born in Los Angeles, 5 September |
| 1933 |
Studies with Cowell in New York |
| 1934 |
Studies with Schönberg in Los Angeles |
| 1937 |
Moves to Seattle to work as a dance accompanist |
| 1938 |
Creates the "prepared piano," installing such objects as clothespins and boxes between the strings to change the timbre. |
| 1938 |
Founds a percussion orchestra |
| 1949 |
Wins a Guggenheim Fellowship and an Award from the National Academy of Arts and Letters |
| 1978 |
Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences |
| 1982 |
Awarded Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Minister of Culture |
| 1992 |
Dies 12 August, in New York |
