Eastman and Yale > Yale
Following graduation from Eastman, Kay won a scholarship to Tanglewood for the summer of 1941, where he studied with Paul Hindemith. With Hindemith's encouragement, Kay then won a scholarship to Yale for the academic year 1941-1942 so that he could continue his work with Hindemith.
As Kay remembered: "Hindemith insisted we write away from the piano. And we did various things in class. He [would] put a text on the board of about 4 or 8 lines and say: "OK, let's write a piece." Twenty minutes later, he wanted to see it, and he'd write one too. And that didn't mean a piece ready for performance or publication, but a first sketch. And nobody used a piano (unless he'd play it over for the class); but it was just fantastic."