Edward MacDowell
Edward Alexander MacDowell (1860-1908) was one of the most well known composers in the nineteenth century and as also one of the first to gain international recognition. " His native land not only accepted but encouraged him-and heaped praise upon him, often so extravagantly as to put his sensitive nature ill at ease. (539, Kingman)" Very talented at the piano and a great composer, Macdowell is one of the first American composers to win international praise. He stands critically as one of the pioneers of artistic music in our nation's history. Not only is his music compelling, his personal life is also quite eventful. Born on December 18th 1860, Edward MacDowell was a musically and artistically talented as a boy who started piano lessons at the age of eight with Juan Buitratgo, a violinist living with MacDowells at the time. Later he studied with a Cuban friend of Juan's, Pablo Desvernine, and also took occasional lessons from Teresa Carreno, another of Juan's friends. In April of 1876, Edward, his mother, and Juan moved to Paris, France so he could better his studies. On October 31, 1877 he was accepted at a music academy called the Conservatoire. In that year he won a full ride scholarship and admission award as a re
Then in May of 1896, Macdowell got a job at Colombia University as the first professor of music. In addition to teaching, he also conducted a chorus called the Mendelssohn Glee Club. After leaving Colombia in 1903, MacDowell's career finally seemed to be approaching a halt. By December of 1904, he was showing great signs of mental illness, and eventually succumbed to a childlike state. Edward Alexander MacDowell died in 1908 of paresis. His death is long forgotten but his music will be remembered in our culture forever. I don't really think that Macdowell should have been regarded as one of America's leading composers, since it is hard to find anything American at all about his music. His influences were all foreign and at one point in his life he even debated staying across seas to compose. His skill (even though great) at the piano undoubtedly follows the style of Liszt's. And adding Indian Themes to his so called "American" music pushes him farther away from our culture. In 1888 he returned again back to the US to perform his works. He concentrated heavily on piano playing and less on the composition of his works. His first performance back in the states was not even close to success. But after many recommendations from different friends and composers
Some common words found in the essay are:
Alexander MacDowell, Indian Suite, Piano Concerto, Nevins York, Paris France, Macdowell American, Indian Themes, Glee Club, Wagner Raff, Darmstadt Conservatory, piano concerto, american music, edward alexander, alexander macdowell, edward alexander macdowell, indian themes,
Approximate Word count = 861
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
