Henry Cowell (1897-1965) was an American composer, pianist, theorist and teacher, and one of the great experimenters of twentieth-century music. Born in California, he became famous early for unconventional piano techniques and a fearless curiosity about sound.

His works include piano pieces using tone clusters and direct manipulation of the strings, orchestral music, chamber works and pieces influenced by non-Western traditions. He also wrote the influential book New Musical Resources.

Cowell’s music often treats sound itself as a field for discovery. Rhythm, timbre, texture and gesture become raw materials, yet his experimentalism can sit beside folk-like simplicity and surprising warmth.

As editor, organiser and teacher, Cowell supported many other modern composers, including figures who would later seem more famous. He was not just a maker of new sounds, but a door-opener, which is sometimes the louder achievement.