Mumma entered the
University of Michigan in 1952 at age 17, after dropping out of high school. He dropped out of Michigan after a year, but the connections he made in Ann Arbor were the foundation of much of his musical career. His early work was in piano, and his musical development drew on traditional composers such as
Bach and
Haydn, as well as modern composers such as
Bartók,
Schoenberg,
Webern, and
Ives. Mumma's performances on piano were often in the context of piano ensembles, partnered with
John Cage,
David Tudor, and other performers. He toured internationally in the 1960s in a two-piano performance collaboration with
Robert Ashley. He cofounded Ann Arbor's Cooperative Studio for Electronic Music with Ashley in 1958–66, was a cofounder of the
ONCE Festival in 1961–66 in Ann Arbor, was a resident composer with the
Merce Cunningham Dance Company alongside Cage and Tudor from 1966–74, and was a member of the
Sonic Arts Union with Ashley,
Alvin Lucier, and
David Behrman. He was awarded a Foundation for Contemporary Arts John Cage Award (2000). Mumma currently lives in
Victoria, British Columbia, where he continues to compose. ==Films==