H. C. Robbins Landon
Encyclopedia
Howard Chandler Robbins Landon (March 6, 1926November 20, 2009) was an American musicologist
.
He was born in Boston
, Massachusetts
and studied music
at Swarthmore College
and Boston University
. He subsequently moved to Europe
where he worked as a music critic. From 1947 he undertook research in Vienna
on Joseph Haydn
, a composer on whom he became an authority. His book Symphonies of Joseph Haydn was published in 1955, and the five volume Haydn: Chronicle and Works followed at the end of the 1970s. He also edited a number of Haydn's works.
Robbins Landon published work on other 18th century composers, including Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
, Ludwig van Beethoven
and Antonio Vivaldi
. He coined the term barococo
.
In 1994 a controversy erupted over the appearance of various piano sonatas which Robbins Landon at first declared to be newly discovered Haydn works, but then concluded were fakes.
He received the Ernst von Siemens Music Prize
in 1992.
He was married twice: his first wife Christa died in a plane crash in 1977. His second wife Else Radant, from whom he was separated, survived him. He lived in France in the latter years of his life, where he died aged 83 on November 20, 2009 in Rabastens
.
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...
.
He was born in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
and studied music
Music
Music is an art form whose medium is sound and silence. Its common elements are pitch , rhythm , dynamics, and the sonic qualities of timbre and texture...
at Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,500 students. The college is located in the borough of Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, 11 miles southwest of Philadelphia....
and Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
. He subsequently moved to Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
where he worked as a music critic. From 1947 he undertook research in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
on Joseph Haydn
Joseph Haydn
Franz Joseph Haydn , known as Joseph Haydn , was an Austrian composer, one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these forms...
, a composer on whom he became an authority. His book Symphonies of Joseph Haydn was published in 1955, and the five volume Haydn: Chronicle and Works followed at the end of the 1970s. He also edited a number of Haydn's works.
Robbins Landon published work on other 18th century composers, including 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...
, 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...
and Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Vivaldi
Antonio Lucio Vivaldi , nicknamed because of his red hair, was an Italian Baroque composer, priest, and virtuoso violinist, born in Venice. Vivaldi is recognized as one of the greatest Baroque composers, and his influence during his lifetime was widespread over Europe...
. He coined the term barococo
Barococo
In music Barococo is a term coined by musicologist H.C. Robbins-Landon which refers to a certain type of easy listening music that originated in the Baroque and pre-Classic periods...
.
In 1994 a controversy erupted over the appearance of various piano sonatas which Robbins Landon at first declared to be newly discovered Haydn works, but then concluded were fakes.
He received the Ernst von Siemens Music Prize
Ernst von Siemens Music Prize
The international Ernst von Siemens Music Prize is an annual music prize given by the Bayerische Akademie der Schönen Künste on behalf of the Ernst von Siemens Musikstiftung , established in 1972. The foundation was established by Ernst von Siemens...
in 1992.
He was married twice: his first wife Christa died in a plane crash in 1977. His second wife Else Radant, from whom he was separated, survived him. He lived in France in the latter years of his life, where he died aged 83 on November 20, 2009 in Rabastens
Rabastens
Rabastens is a commune in the Tarn department in southern France.-References:*...
.
Writings
This list is incomplete.- Symphonies of Joseph Haydn (1955)
- Beethoven; a documentary study. Compiled and edited by H.C. Robbins Landon. New York: Macmillan. 1970. (Translation of Beethoven; sein Leben und seine Welt in zeitgenössischen Bildern und Texten Zurich: Universal Edition, 1970.)
- Haydn: Chronicle and Works. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1976-1980. (Also London: Thames and Hudson.) v. 3 has ISBN 0-500-01164-8.
- Haydn: A Documentary Study. New York: Rizzoli, 1981. ISBN 0-8478-0388-0.
- Mozart and the Masons : new light on the lodge "Crowned hope". New York, N.Y. : Thames and Hudson, 1983, c1982. ISBN 0-500-55014-X.
- Handel and his World. (First American Edition.) Boston: Little, Brown. 1984. ISBN 0-316-51360-1.
- 1791: Mozart's Last Year. London and New York, N.Y. : Thames and Hudson, 1988, 1999. ISBN 0-500-28107-6 (1999 edition).
- With Wyn Jones, David: Haydn, His Life and Music. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. 1988. ISBN 0-253-37265-8.
- Mozart, the golden years, 1781-1791. New York: Schirmer Books, 1989. ISBN 0-02-872025-3.
- Mozart and Vienna. First American Edition: New York : Schirmer Books : Maxwell Macmillan International, 1991. ISBN 0-02-871317-6.
- Vivaldi: Voice of the Baroque. London: Thames & Hudson, 1993. ISBN 0-500-01576-7.
External links
- An Interview with H. C. Robbins Landon, Early Music World, 2007
- HC Robbins Landon - Daily Telegraph obituary