Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007)

Stockhausen, the German composer who was among the leaders of the European avant-garde in the decades following World War II, was a pioneer of what's now known as electroacoustic music, combining live voices and instruments with electronic and recorded sounds.

In later life, Stockhausen gained notoriety for his eccentricity and verbal provocations such as describing the 9/11 attacks as "the greatest work of art one can imagine."

Ivan Hewitt's obituary of the composer in The Guardian:

http://music.guardian.co.uk/obituaries/story/0,,2224081,00.html