He has an interest in the music of Asia, and is especially noted for his work with gamelan. He was born in Montana in 1948 and studied music from an early age, including piano, percussion, and guitar. He received his M.A. in music composition from Mills College, where he studied with Anthony Braxton, Conlon Nancarrow, David Rosenboom, Pauline Oliveros and Larry Polansky and received the prestigious Paul M. Henry Award for excellence in music composition. He has also studied Javanese gamelan extensively with a number of teachers, including K.R.T. Wasitodiningrat, Endo Suando, Antonius Sutrisna, Supardi, and Sri Djoko Rahardja.