Robert Ashley

Studied with Ross Lee Finney, Roberto Gerhard, Leslie Bassett. Music degrees from Univ. of Michigan and Manhattan School of Music, worked in Speech Research Lab (psychoacoustics and cultural speech patterns) and was a Research Assistant in acoustics at the Architectural Research Lab. Co-founder legendary ONCE Group in the 1960s, co-director Center for Contemporary Music at Mills College in 1970s. Created new kind of opera (sometimes called the New Narrative opera) in works like That Morning Thing (1967), Combination Wedding and Funeral (1964), Perfect Lives an opera-for-TV (1980), e/L Aficionado (1991). Social behavior and and language illusion studies like The 4th of July for tape (1960), The Wolfman (1964), in memoriam ... Crazy Horse (symphony) (1963), The Trial of Anne Opie Wehrer and Unknown Accomplices for Crimes Against Humanity (1968). ~ "Blue" Gene Tyranny