Alan Tyson
Encyclopedia
Alan Walker Tyson was a British
musicologist
who specialized in studies of the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
and Ludwig van Beethoven
. He was Senior Research Fellow at All Souls College, Oxford
, and a Fellow of the British Academy
.
One of his most celebrated publications was Mozart: Studies of the Autograph Scores, whose chapters detailed the study of watermark
s in Mozart's autograph
s as a method of dating the scores
. This book also included several Tyson discoveries, such as the true ending to the Rondo in A for Piano and Orchestra
, K.
386, which previously had only been known in a completion arranged for solo piano by Cipriani Potter and published in 1837. Tyson also established that the standard version of the second movement of Mozart's Horn Concerto in D
, K. 412/514, was actually completed after Mozart's death by his pupil Franz Xaver Süssmayr
.
Additionally, Tyson edited a noteworthy series of volumes entitled Beethoven Studies. His interest in watermarks and paper studies on Beethoven scores actually predated his involvement in those of Mozart.
Prior to becoming intensely involved in musicology
, Tyson was Lecturer in Psychopathology
and Developmental Psychology
at Oxford
from 1968 to 1970. He had read Classical Moderations
and Greats at the University of Oxford
, and medicine at University College Hospital
.
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
musicologist
Musicology
Musicology is the scholarly study of music. The word is used in narrow, broad and intermediate senses. In the narrow sense, musicology is confined to the music history of Western culture...
who specialized in studies of the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , baptismal name Johannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as pinnacles of symphonic, concertante, chamber, piano, operatic, and choral music...
and Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western art music, he remains one of the most famous and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, then the capital of the Electorate of Cologne and part of...
. He was Senior Research Fellow at All Souls College, Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, and a Fellow of the British Academy
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
.
One of his most celebrated publications was Mozart: Studies of the Autograph Scores, whose chapters detailed the study of watermark
Watermark
A watermark is a recognizable image or pattern in paper that appears as various shades of lightness/darkness when viewed by transmitted light , caused by thickness or density variations in the paper...
s in Mozart's autograph
Autograph
An autograph is a document transcribed entirely in the handwriting of its author, as opposed to a typeset document or one written by an amanuensis or a copyist; the meaning overlaps with that of the word holograph.Autograph also refers to a person's artistic signature...
s as a method of dating the scores
Sheet music
Sheet music is a hand-written or printed form of music notation that uses modern musical symbols; like its analogs—books, pamphlets, etc.—the medium of sheet music typically is paper , although the access to musical notation in recent years includes also presentation on computer screens...
. This book also included several Tyson discoveries, such as the true ending to the Rondo in A for Piano and Orchestra
Rondo for Piano and Orchestra in A major (Mozart)
The Rondo for Piano and Orchestra in A major, K. 386 is a concert rondo by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, believed by Alfred Einstein to have been composed in late 1782.-Composition:...
, K.
Köchel-Verzeichnis
The Köchel-Verzeichnis is a complete, chronological catalogue of compositions by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart which was originally created by Ludwig von Köchel. It is abbreviated K or KV. For example, Mozart's Requiem in D minor was, according to Köchel's counting, the 626th piece Mozart composed....
386, which previously had only been known in a completion arranged for solo piano by Cipriani Potter and published in 1837. Tyson also established that the standard version of the second movement of Mozart's Horn Concerto in D
Horn Concerto No. 1 (Mozart)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Horn Concerto No. 1 in D major, K. 412/386b was written in 1791. The work is in two movements:*I. Allegro*II. Rondo 6/8This is one of two horn concerti of Mozart to include bassoons Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Horn Concerto No. 1 in D major, K. 412/386b was written in 1791....
, K. 412/514, was actually completed after Mozart's death by his pupil Franz Xaver Süssmayr
Franz Xaver Süssmayr
Franz Xaver Süssmayr was an Austrian composer, now famous for his completion of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Requiem.-Early life:...
.
Additionally, Tyson edited a noteworthy series of volumes entitled Beethoven Studies. His interest in watermarks and paper studies on Beethoven scores actually predated his involvement in those of Mozart.
Prior to becoming intensely involved in musicology
Musicology
Musicology is the scholarly study of music. The word is used in narrow, broad and intermediate senses. In the narrow sense, musicology is confined to the music history of Western culture...
, Tyson was Lecturer in Psychopathology
Psychopathology
Psychopathology is the study of mental illness, mental distress, and abnormal/maladaptive behavior. The term is most commonly used within psychiatry where pathology refers to disease processes...
and Developmental Psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
at Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
from 1968 to 1970. He had read Classical Moderations
Literae Humaniores
Literae Humaniores is the name given to an undergraduate course focused on Classics at Oxford and some other universities.The Latin name means literally "more humane letters", but is perhaps better rendered as "Advanced Studies", since humaniores has the sense of "more refined" or "more learned",...
and Greats at the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, and medicine at University College Hospital
University College Hospital
University College Hospital is a teaching hospital located in London, United Kingdom. It is part of the University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and is closely associated with University College London ....
.
Sources
- British Academy Fellows Archive entry for Tyson: Gives birth and death dates, appointments, major publications.
- The Musical Times' obituary for Tyson: Brief biographical summary.
- Oliver Neighbour, "Alan Walker Tyson, 1926-2000", from Proceedings of the British Academy, 115, pp. 367–382 (downloaded from The British Academy website on June 10, 2006): A more extended obituary notice.
- Alan Tyson, Mozart: Studies of the Autograph Scores, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1987. ISBN 0-674-58831-2.
- Ch. 17, "The Rondo for Piano and Orchestra, K. 386" (pp. 262–289), presents Tyson's discovery of Mozart's original ending.
- Ch. 16, "Mozart's D Major Horn Concerto: Questions of Date and of Authenticity" (pp. 246–261) deals with Tyson's findings regarding K. 412/514.