| Timeline |
| 1925 |
Born 26 March, in Montbrison, France |
| 1930s |
Majors in mathematics at the College de Saint-Itienne |
| 1932 |
Begins piano lessons at the age of seven |
| 1941 |
Studies mathematics, engineering, and music in Lyon |
| 1944 |
Begins studies with Messiaen at the Paris Conservatoire, and with René Leibowitz privately |
| 1954 |
Helps form the Domaine Musical - concerts devoted to modern music |
| 1955 |
Accepts teaching post at Darmstadt |
| 1958 |
Begins conducting career with the Südwestfunk Orchestra in Baden-Baden, Germany |
| 1969 |
Becomes the principal guest conductor of Cleveland Orchestra |
| 1971 |
Appointed conductor and musical director of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra |
| 1971 |
Chief conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra |
| 1977 |
Serves as director of the Institut de Recherche et de Coordination Acoustique/Musique in Paris through the early 1990s |
| 1994 |
Wins the Prix Caecilia with the Ensemble InterContemporain
|
| 1995 |
Awarded the Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik (Germany); named Artist of the Year by Gramophone Magazine |
| 1995 |
Wins the Gramophone Award and the Edison Award |
| 1996 |
Together with the Cleveland Orchestra, wins a Grammy for a recording of La Mer by Debussy
|
| ~1950 |
Befriends Karlheinz Stockhausen and John Cage |
